Ipomoeas In His Sheath
by WaterLily95
Summary: Everyone else figured it out when his boomerang started smelling like moonflowers instead of hoarded seal jerky. AU. Slowburn Sokka/Yue
1. Struggles in the South

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.**_

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Struggles in the South**

"It is I! The Great Saber Tooth! The spirit of this village and La's most trusted servant!"

A Water Tribe maiden brushed her hair loopies into place and laughed in response to the announcement. "More like the Spirit of Yak Milk. Wipe that off your face."

The so-called "Spirit of the Saber Tooth" straightened up and brushed his tiny sleeve against his mouth, accidentally smearing some of his war paint in the process. He held onto a deformed-looking "club" made from whale bone in one arm and molded a snowball in the other. "Okay, _now_ I'm the Spirit of the Saber Tooth." He pointed the club towards her. "You're the human called Katara, aren't you?"

"You mean _Princess_ Katara, O Honorable Saber Tooth Spirit."

The boy turned to his cousin, a slightly older-looking tribesboy. "Is she the girl, Great Mammoth Spirit?"

"Yeah! She tied my tusks to a glacier when I was sleeping! I had to carry that thing around for _hours_. Do you know how long it took me to break the ice?"

"Princess Katara, you can't play pranks on the spirits. It's wrong," the younger boy told her. "I need you to apopo… alogopize… alopogize..."

"Apologize?"

"Yeah, that. Say you're sorry to my friend right now, and we'll forgive you."

"Well I won't," Katara said. "What are you gonna do about it, _Kohana_?"

"That's Mr. Saber Tooth Spirit to you!" he corrected. "If you don't admit your crimes, I'm gonna take you down to the Spirit World and lock you away forever!"

"How exactly are you going to capture me? With your little toy?"

"This is a real weapon, woman!" he waved his club against her. "And for your information, I also have spirit powers."

"Let's see if your spirit powers can keep up with my bending."

"Stand back, Umiaq...I-I mean, Mammoth Spirit," Kohana growled. "I will defend the honor of your tusks!" And with that, he lunged forward, club in one hand, snowballs aiming from the other in Katara's direction. With a knowing smirk, she bent them easily into liquid and redirected the tendril of water towards the boy. He dodged out of the way, and his friend got splashed instead.

"Aah! Saber Tooth Spirit!" Umiaq cried out.

"That's it, you're going down, human!" Kohana propelled himself at Katara from behind her and attempted to knock her down by crashing down on her, but a cushion of ice pulled him away from her. Katara used another tendril to tie his hands together. He wobbled and fell backward into the snow.

"And _that's_ how you tame a wild saber tooth," she taunted. "If you're really as powerful as you say you are, you'll get back up and fight."

"I was just being easy on you!"

"Oh really?"

"Untie me right now, and I'll show you who's boss!"

She melted the ice from his wrists and watched in amusement as he picked up his fallen club. Like a penguin duck, he waddled through the treacherous ice carefully before launching his club at her again. She drenched him quickly before he tumbled back into the snow.

"Haha!" Katara said. "I win!"

"It's not over yet!" Umiaq said, turning to the shivering fighter in the ice. "Come on, Saber Tooth, don't fail me now!"

But Kohana simply dropped his club and looked at the snow in a mixture of frustration and longing. He took a seat in the ice and sunk back against it.

Katara's smirk dissolved into concern. "Kohana? You okay?" She trudged over to him and bent the water off of him, her hand resting on his shoulder worriedly. "You know I'm just kidding, right? The battle's not over yet. Come on."

"It's not that," the boy grumbled. "It's no fun if Sokka's not here to get splashed in the face for me."

"Yeah. It's more fun if Sokka was here," Umiaq agreed.

Katara shook her head. She knew Kohana and their older brother, Sokka, bonded over their goofiness, imagination, and self-claimed superiority of their skills over her bending. Sokka and Kohana were sidekicks in every way and were always on the same team. At least, that was the case whenever Sokka had the chance to stay in the South for more than a few days. "Fine, I won't bend this time," she coaxed him. "Come on, attack me. Unless if you're _scared_. Are you scared of me, Mr. Saber Tooth?"

But Kohana wasn't moved and only mumbled quietly, "This is a hard game without Sokka."

Umiaq sighed. "Well I gotta get going now. Momma's probably looking for me." He nudged Kohana softly. "I'll see you later then, buddy?"

"Yeah."

As Umiaq headed off in the opposite direction, Katara glanced back at her sullen little brother. She, too, missed Sokka, but this was the way it had to be. As much of a nut-brain as her older brother could be sometimes, it was still his hard work that was feeding them.

The South hadn't always been under this economic distress. At least, that was what her father and grandfather always told her. If there was anything to say about the Water Tribe, it was a nation of resources. Others would immediately shoot down this remark, but it was true. Although considered to be disadvantaged compared to the other three nations, the Water Tribe at its core had its own share of luxuries however simplistic they may seem. The people of the Water Tribe are perhaps the most resilient of all communities. Through thick and thin, they allowed themselves to be pushed and pulled but didn't step out of line with the Spirits. Their sense of community was strong, and even if they weren't the type to be indulged in meditation and were nowhere near accustomed to strict vegetarianism, they were nevertheless a profoundly spiritual group of people second to the Air Nomads. Like the airbenders, they did not crave the industrial luxuries of the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation. They embrace nature the way children cling to their mothers. In fact, the two divisions of the tribe were characterized by spirituality more than politics. The North was the guardian of Tui, and the South was the guardian of La. The ocean, the moon, and the harsh tundra sculpted their customs and traditions, and in this respect, the inhabitants found order, peace, civilization. They didn't just survive and adapt to the harsh weather conditions; they _conquered_ them and created a world entirely around them.

This was the way things had been for several millennia, resulting in the mutual relationship between the sister tribes. The respective Spirits, too, were very benevolent in their own right, watching over one another's dominant tribe, ruling the entire civilization inseparably. True enough to Tui's grace and beauty, diplomatic essence, and command over bending, the North was surrounded by intricacy and a kind of authenticity that made it seem more like a celestial city than its reputation as a long-forged cultural center. It was currently more engaged in trade compared to the South and naturally produced a greater number of benders. The North was basically water surrounded by land; hence, it was a city built almost entirely on water and was run by canal systems. The Northerners' bending was what helped _literally_ shape their empire, and the ease of transportation through water also made it more convenient for international vessels to distribute goods throughout its capital city. Not to mention it was the original birthplace of their civilization and was more well known in the industrial market for its complexity and social relations.

The South, however, was the ruthlessly smug face of La, raw and possessing of a luxury different from the North. Its spirituality extended as far as worshipping the demigods and minor spirits, recognizing the Yin-Yang/Tui-La dynamics, and participating in occasional rituals though not to the tradition-based extent of the North. A giant mass of land surrounded by water, the South prided itself in its overall hunting skills, greater surface area, and abundant game. While it was always the first to jump up at others' need for help, it was never entirely focused on interdependence or trade. Its only active negotiation with other nations was over fisheries, which also depended on brawn and human effort. Of course, as the South was perfectly capable of feeding itself, it regularly endorsed its primal need to hunt, hunt, and hunt some more.

The tribe had been going through its Golden Age over sixty years ago following Pakku and Kanna's transition to the South. Pakku's resilient influence and Kanna's headstrong liberalism spilled into their involvements in the South and gradually earned them the positions of a minor chief and chieftess. Their son Hakoda proved himself to be a capable leader of the Southern Confederation, and subsequently he and his wife, Kya, were elected as the tribe's chieftain and chieftess. All was well until the past thirty years when the South started facing the increasing possibility of overfishing and overhunting. In the beginning of the downward spiral of their economic conditions, they didn't panic too much. They were the face of La, the Grand Wolf, the spirit symbolizing survival. Surely they could get through the devastation. But as the years passed by, they were proven wrong to the point of making Chief Hakoda take further initiatives.

First and foremost, as wolves were getting scarce and were also deemed the most sacred, Hakoda and the other minor village chiefs passed laws pertaining to the canines' protection, leaving other animals vulnerable given the increasing population of Southerners. The need to find food caused many of the men to move out of their areas and travel to neighboring villages to catch adequate fish or game. Knowing that things would only get worse at this rate, Hakoda was determined to follow the North's footsteps in securing more trade agreements with the neighboring nations. That was when the first Water Tribe merchants decided to set sail, selecting the Winter Solstice, the Night of La as their auspicious moment for beginning their endeavors.

That was also the night when Hakoda's son, Sokka, was born.

The South's trading efforts started with their closest neighbors: the Air Nomads. The Southern Air Temple wasn't exactly "close," but it was certainly a popular starting point. Whaletail Island was midway; it was officially recognized as Air Nomad territory, but culturally it was a mixture of Air Nomad and Water Tribe considering the many lores and legends crafted about the place. Of course, the Water Tribe could trade only certain things with the Air Nomads like rare medicinal herbs, arctic florets gathered from snow forests, handicrafts (those which weren't made from animal skins). Therefore, things like jewelry, woven baskets, perfumes, and other accessories were the only accepted goods, and those, too, were limited because the airbenders were not concerned as much with materiality. Soon enough, many Southern ships started seeking out as far as the Eastern Air Temple to keep up with the transactions. The airbenders were like their spiritual brothers; they willingly helped out however they could.

Throughout this time, the South had also been involved in trade with the nearest Earth Kingdom towns, prominent among them being Kyoshi Island and Chin Village. It required much effort and took nearly all of the South's best ships to trade since Kyoshi Island and Chin Village were relatively small and didn't cover much of the ocean with as many ships. It was further difficult since the Southern Water Tribe also kept away from the bigger markets and now had a harder time securing a place in the bustling competitions within the trading business, but Hakoda did manage to catch the attention of a few more mining towns within the Earth Kingdom and later a group of small territories belonging to the Fire Nation. Wherever they went, however, transporting their goods and returning with what the tribe fed off of, they were still limited in how far they could go. It was impossible to reach any place further than Gaoling at the southern tip of the Earth Kingdom, and even if they _wanted_ to go further, they couldn't, too weighed down by debt to ask for more loans.

Even with so many involvements and lots of effort, the process seemed tedious and endless. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get in contact with bigger cities. They couldn't physically reach out to the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation capitals for assistance, and correspondence slowed the process even further. How much longer were the tribesmen going to have to rely on small towns? How much longer were they going to carry their own goods and deliver them to villages millions of miles away from home? Going and coming back, relying on cucumberquats to appease their tireless hunger, collapsing back home only to leave barely a few days later for delivering another shipment. There was no good reason for encouraging the men to settle down and leave this process behind, no circumstance allowing the men to take a break if they were dominated by the need to feed their large families and help pay off the South's debts.

By this time, however, Sokka had reached the age of fourteen, and the tribe decided to take matters further and venture to what they believed would be the first checkpoint of successful communication with the Earth Kingdom government: Omashu. It was a bustling city, highly known and well represented in the Earth Kingdom court. Proposing an alliance with Omashu would surely send word to Ba Sing Se and allow the Earth King to consider the Southern Water Tribe as a worthy trading partner. The journey _to_ Omashu, though, was incredibly far, much more complicated than any of their destinations up until then. Hakoda wanted to take up the chance and decided to take his son along, knowing this was a good way of fulfilling the ice dodging tradition, but things took a turn for the worst. The journey ended up being rough; a violent storm tormented Chief Hakoda's ship and destroyed the supplies, threatening to tear the ship to pieces with its wrath. Sokka, however, proved himself highly capable and displayed his god-like mastery over the ocean by somehow managing to steer them all to safety. Thankfully no one was thrown overboard or killed, but among the numerous crew members who were injured, Hakoda suffered the worst. A severe leg injury left him with a permanent limp and would render him unfit for any such voyage or strenuous activity in the future.

It truly was a heart-wrenching accident that left Hakoda grim and depressed for several months out of feelings of uselessness and anxiety for his family's welfare, but he was able to help out in shipbuilding, at least. Pakku was a capable man for someone so old, but he, too, was faced with difficulties of his own and found that assisting Hakoda was the best course of action. Therefore, Sokka took up the task of delivering the goods. His decision was immediate, too; barely a month after Hakoda recovered, the goofy kid set off on his first voyage and led the men so naturally as if he'd been doing it forever.

Despite Sokka's cockiness and childishness at times, he was still unconditionally devoted to the safety of his community, family, and crew. His confidence over the seas was exemplary as were his intelligence, wit, humor, and prowess over science and engineering. His efforts of capturing the attention of the "jackpot cities" were also commendable, though the South was still largely ignored. He was a hard worker despite some of his failures; every time he came home from his trips, he charged out into the distant wilds with his spear, spending the entire week's worth of time he had to hunt food enough to last his family at least three weeks. And he would leave again, returning in time to replenish their stock of game and prepare for the next voyage. Within a span of two years, he became the default breadwinner of the family as well as a capable leader of the tribe. Five winters later, he became a well-known authority figure of the South's Navigation Committee. Now at twenty three years of age, he was as busy as ever, and it seemed that the only thing missing from his unbeatable record was his official title as the Chieftain of the South; that, too, is to be fulfilled in the near future.

"I don't get to go with him when he travels the wide world," Kohana said, bringing Katara out of her thoughts and back to reality. "Why can't I go on his fishing trips? He's only two villages away."

"Because you're the _oldest_ man in the tribe, and it's not easy to travel around the 'wide world,'" she said, still trying to make him smile. "Trust me, he'll be back by sundown."

"But he has to leave again after tomorrow."

"Yeah...but at least he's not gonna miss your birthday like he did last year. He said he's gonna be with you all day tomorrow."

"Yeah, right," Kohana mumbled.

"Well hey, if he doesn't, I'll freeze him in the igloo all day long and give him nothing but kelp juice to drink."

"Eugh!"

She smiled and stood up, leaning forward to help him out of the snow. "And look on the bright side, 'Hana. I bet he's off catching some arctic hen for you. You love that, right?"

"Mmhm!" As always, the mention of food perked him up just as it did to Sokka.

"Nice meal for a noble Saber Tooth, isn't it?"

"Grrr!" the little boy shuffled his crouching fingers in her face in attempts of "clawing" at her skin. She chuckled and ruffled his hair.

"You wild thing, you."

He held his hands up. "Carry me?"

"Prince Kohana, you'll be turning six tomorrow," she said. "You're too old to be carried."

"Please, Katara? Please please _please_?"

"Fine, but just this once." Of course, she always said that and never stayed true to it even once. She sighed and hoisted him up to her height with her bending, catching him in her arms.

"Can we go feed the koala-otters tomorrow? You, me, and Sokka? Oh, and I want to go sledding at Antiman's Peak."

"Of course we can."

"And I wanna go ice skating and dolphin diving. _Oooh_! Can we stop by Lady Nagara's house, too? I really want to pick out my husky."

"Anything you want."

Suddenly, two dark shadows stepped into their view and interrupted them. Kohana swallowed his rambling and frowned as Katara tightened her protective grip on the boy and stepped back, glancing at their unexpected visitors. One of them grunted, eyeing them with impatience. "It would be nice if you and your family could arrange for what _I_ want as well."


	2. Fortunes?

**Chapter 2: Fortunes?**

The voice belonged to a man that Katara gradually recognized: a stout middle-aged Earth Kingdom high-ranking government official in thick green robes and a long beard. Lee was his name. He'd visited them twice before, demanding them to pay back the hefty amount they'd secured from him over three years ago. The last time he'd been here, he'd warned them that he would have to think about proceeding legally if they didn't pay him back in time, and true to what he said, he brought along an official with him.

"You must excuse him, Princess Katara. He's been quite stressed out, you see," said the lean man next to the official. He then bowed in greeting. "By the way, I'm Donghai, financial advisor and close friend of Mr. Lee here."

Katara whispered something to Kohana and ushered him inside their igloo. Before long, the two guests were seated on the most comfortable pelts in the igloo and were given what little food other than fish was remaining. Kya and Kanna were to handle the matter, but Katara was stubborn and insisted on wanting in on the conversation.

"It's my first time trying authentic seaweed rolls," Donghai said with attempted cheerfulness. "The Water Tribe cuisine in Gaoling isn't nearly as flavorful."

Kya forced a smile before briefly looking at her openly abrasive daughter and mother in law, wordlessly establishing that she would be doing most of the talking.

"If it's possible, may I have a second helping, ma'am?" Donghai asked. "Lee, what do you say? Care to try some more of this ambrosia?"

Lee gave a grunt in the affirmative.

"Look at these pigs," Kanna muttered to where only Katara and Kya could hear. "What are they here for, the food or the transaction? They know we're not in the best of situations and still show up to devour everything we have. We're a big, growing family. Can't they see we have needs?"

"It can't be helped," Kya sighed and smiled anyway. "Of course, sir. Just a moment." When she made it into the next room, however, she was greeted by Kohana, who had been stuffing the last of the rolls in his mouth this entire time. He flashed a sheepish grin at his mother through his inflated cheeks.

Oh dear.

"I tell you what? You could come down to Gaoling and open up your own restaurant!" Donghai blabbered in the meanwhile. "You will definitely win millions of hearts. The experience pays well, too. Charge a hefty price for your delectable cooking, and you'll be the finest chefs in the city!"

"It doesn't sound terrible, but we know the value of food too much to charge hefty prices and go as far as snatching it from the mouths of the poor," Kanna said. "And you know how city folk can be. We offer our hospitality, but they always expect more. They don't consider our needs or the fact that we're starving." Clearly she was talking about how the two of them were hogging every last morsel in the igloo.

The advisor laughed nervously and seemed to have caught onto that. He cleared his throat and called out much to Kya's relief, "No thank you, ma'am! I'm afraid we're running out of time." And immediately he whipped out a few documents from his satchel.

"You remember me when you need my money, but you don't remember me when I ask for it," Lee began the transaction in a rather unorthodox fashion, simultaneously continuing to lick his fingers clean of the seaweed sauce. "Poor or not, you have a responsibility that you need to keep. Unless if you want me to keep reminding you in other ways, which I'm sure you wouldn't be able to handle given my influence."

"Now now, Lee, that's not proper protocol," Donghai chided, but it can't be concluded that he was a nice man; he would be insofar as the transaction gets settled once and for all. Otherwise, he was just another one of their seemingly infinite creditors. "I, uh...I see the men aren't home this time around, ma'am."

"They left early in the morning to run a few errands," Kya said. "They should be back by sundown."

"I'm surprised your husband is still running around," Lee remarked. "With that useless leg of his, he can only do so much."

To which Kya's patience faltered, replaced by a deep glare. "You do realize you're talking about the esteemed Chieftain of the South."

"Some chief. Can't even feed his family by himself, and he claims he can feed his nation and get them out of their misery. How pathetic."

"You are sitting in my home, eating my food, and receiving my hospitality," Kya raised her voice. "I advise you to show your respect."

"Respect? Hmph. Your poverty hasn't toned down your pride, I see. Let's not forget that you're the ones who are indebted, not me."

Katara was ready to slap him with a tendril of water, but Kanna gave them both wary looks. _He's not worth our time._ Not to mention, he was a government official. Getting into trouble would only mean negative consequences for them.

"Alright, Lee, settle down. If you do all the talking, what am I here for?" The advisor turned back to the chieftess. "I'm afraid we can't stay until sundown. Your older son... He's not back yet from his trip, I suppose?"

"He's here. He's off hunting and fishing in the next village."

"Oh, I see." He then gathered his documents together. "As concerning as it is for me to express my reason for being here...I can only say that I understand the situation of your tribe. I really do," came the generic statement of attempted empathy. "But Mr. Lee has been facing certain financial issues himself...even if not to your extent. I feel that he's right to raise the concern for money."

"We would've been in a much more dire situation if it wasn't for your assistance, and we can't be more grateful, but you must understand. We need more time. We are in no position to give—"

"That is not my concern," Lee grumbled. "I don't care about what you did with my money or how well it served your purpose. It's been two long years, and I can't wait any longer."

"I assure you that Sokka will have everything taken care of as soon as he meets with the Department of Commerce at Ba Sing Se," Kya said calmly.

Donghai widened his eyes. "Ba Sing Se, you say?"

"Yes. His most recent works involve advertising our tribe's mineable resources: gold, iron ore, and several minerals."

" _Gold?!_ " Donghai and Lee exclaimed simultaneously.

"The officials in Ba Sing Se will not resist the chance," Kanna jumped in calmly. "And once the partnership is finalized, we will arrange the money and contact you first."

Lee certainly seemed pleased. "How much longer do you need?"

"Sokka's leaving for Ba Sing Se the day after tomorrow," Katara answered. "A two week trip just to get there. He's been waiting for an official audience with the Earth King for the past two months, and it could take another week just to secure a partnership."

Donghai suddenly leaned over to Lee and whispered something in his ear. Lee nodded in the affirmative and said to them, "Why waste his time travelling two weeks when he has a suitable partner three days away? Instead of paying us off in cash, you know you could just partner with us for this."

Katara came close to blurting out a distinct, "no." These people insult them one minute and try to hoard their opportunities the next? The same opinion was shared by Kanna and Kya, but they didn't let their anger overpower the benefits that came with partnership. This meant their lives would take a turn for the better. Had Hakoda and Pakku been home, they would've agreed to this at any cost.

"We intend on having more than one partner anyway," Kya said. "Ba Sing Se is one of them. Possibly the Fire Nation capital if we can secure an audience with Fire Lord Iroh next. It wouldn't hurt to consider Gaoling as well."

Katara's frown deepened. _Are they serious?_

"I suppose we have a deal, then," Donghai said, quickly taking some notes on paper before shoving the documents back inside his bag. It was easy to see that they were drooling over this transaction despite their efforts in maintaining dignified indifference.

"We'll give you three more months," Lee said, standing up. "Within this time, we expect to hear back from you. If not, we'll return immediately and collect the money paid with interest. Otherwise, we'll have to seize your property until the debt is completely paid off."

"I guarantee you that won't happen," chimed in a voice the chief's family knew too well. It was Chunta, the only medicine man in the span of forty neighboring Southern villages including theirs and, true to his name, a deceiver in some of his schemes. The man was scrawny, nothing but bone and a very tiny layer of skin that made people question if he really was a member of the Water Tribe of all nations. He was not of the conventional "eerie, creepy" type in the class of shamans and was more of a mix between a well-wisher and a recurring pain in the blubber than an actual threat, but still he had the tone of a roaring hyena-leopard that added onto his brash confidence at times. "Everything will be settled by tomorrow morning!"

" _What?!"_ the ladies screeched. Kohana peeked out from the other room at the commotion and hastily wiped his mouth.

"And who are you, good sir?" Donghai asked. "A near relation, perhaps?"

"Of course I am!"

"No, he's not!"

"Aw, you're too kind," Chunta chuckled at the women. "But really, Madame Kanna, you expect your grandson to be involved in a transaction with these filthy pigs?"

"Watch your mouth," Donghai flared.

"What in the name of the Spirits are you even _doing_ , Chunta?" Kanna hissed. "This does not concern you—!"

"Stop doubting and start trusting, ma'am!" the shaman went on, ignoring the red-faced officials. "I can see it now. By this time tomorrow, your entire fate will be turned right-side up! These heathens will come crawling to your feet! Chieftess Kya, please, at least you should consider my words."

"What is this now, some kind of drama?" Lee bellowed, greatly annoyed by the simultaneous outbursts. "I thought we had our transaction established already. We take pity on you and generously offer to compromise, and you not only shove it aside but get this savage to insult us like there's no tomorrow!"

"That wasn't the intention, sir," Kya started, but really they could care less. They weren't too worried about the insults as opposed to the missed opportunity for monetary benefit and the potential negative consequences. "Please, don't listen to—"

"Enough. We wasted a lot of time here as it is."

"Lee, wait!" Donghai panicked. "Think about the gold...er...gold _en_ opportunity—"

"I am not going to stoop low enough to ignore these insults and come lapping at these savages' prospects like a dog!" He glared at the women. "I will be back tomorrow, and I will have every last inch of this property and every single one of your valuables seized!"

"Not even in your dreams," Chunta shot back. "The Spirits are on our side!"

Much to their dismay and Kya's immense anger, the official spat on the ground next to a small snowy indoor-shrine housing two figurines, one black in the figure of a muscular man and one white in the shape of an elegant woman. "Well then, let's see what your gods are gonna do about it." And he stormed out, dragging his nearly-wailing friend along.

"What on earth, Chunta?!" Katara demanded. "I might have been perfectly fine with you turning down their offer, but insulting them? Now those idiots are going to come back."

"Now now, don't fret, honorable ladies, I'm aware of what I've done—"

"Oh are you?" Kanna said angrily.

"Please, I could see it in your eyes that you didn't want to make the deal with those mannerless brutes."

"Yes, but you didn't have to make things worse!"

"We're not on the offensive to get to decide everything," Kya said. "That's why we were agreeing to their offer. We also have a child in the family. How can we expect to go on this way?"

"Ah, but you're missing the point! Your little one is your lucky charm. Things are changing for the better on his special day!" The shaman waved at Kohana and offered him the usual pouch of kelp cookies, a treat that the little boy eagerly accepted every time.

"They're going to be back tomorrow to take action," Katara said. "If we get kicked out and have everything taken away from us, where are we going to stay? You think it's easy to create a hut just like that with all of our benders toiling out there on the ships?"

"Nothing like that is going to happen, I promise you! Here, have a seat and I'll explain—" his stomach suddenly rumbled. "On second thought, why don't we wait until the men get here? The news I'm about to share requires all of your attention."

All he received were collective facepalms.

* * *

The members of the chief's family were seated in a circle around a small fire with their shadows dancing against the large igloo's walls and bouncing off of hung pelts. Seated between Hakoda and the shaman was Pakku with Kohana lounging in his lap. Hakoda was holding his wife's hand while Kanna and Katara were leaning against the other side of the wall, bonding over their notions of ridiculousness that greatly mirrored Pakku's. Sokka had not arrived yet, but it was understood that he would be late on hunting nights. Tonight was especially anticipated thanks to everyone's rumbling stomachs, save for Kohana who had nibbled on the cookies and leftover seaweed rolls and of course, Chunta, who had hoarded the few fish they had left. Even so, Chunta had commenced his ritual and spewed forth everything he'd noticed with regard to the planets and celestial positioning and loads of other such mystical things.

"So you're saying that overnight, thirty years' worth of hard work will be paid off," Pakku said skeptically. "And we'll be rewarded with ten times what we deserve?"

"Yes yes _yes_!" Chunta said excitedly as he flipped through his charts and scrolls. "According to Sokka's birth chart here—"

"Forget about the birth chart, Chunta," Hakoda sighed. "You've been saying this same thing ever since Sokka was born."

"Look, my friend, I know I made some false predictions in the past—"

" _Some_ false predictions?" Kanna jumped in and raised her eyebrows.

"Alright, a lot, but all of you can't deny that I was wrong when I predicted that Prince Sokka would eventually become the main breadwinner for the family. Or what about each time I predicted the gender of your children, Chief Hakoda? I also foretold you that you would have a another son after the princess was born, and you didn't believe me. And look who's with us today," he smiled as he pat Kohana's back. "You see? I wasn't wrong on the more important issues."

"But you're not always right for us to put our blind faith in you," Hakoda said. "Thanks to your performance earlier, we're having to look forward to another skirmish with our creditors. As if Sokka doesn't deal with enough already."

"Trust me on this one, please! Now is the time for us to feel excited for our new Golden Age! Just have a look at Sokka's birth chart. It's remarkable for him starting tomorrow morning and onwards in terms of career and wealth. The stars are aligned _perfectly_ for him, which means prosperity will come knocking at your door with Tui's grace!"

"Tui seems to be too occupied with other things to notice our plight," Pakku said sadly.

"No no, She has never forgotten us. All of this suffering is only for a lifetime of happiness for you and your children! You see, it's not just abundance of food and money we're talking about. There's also an abundance of love!"

Kanna coughed. Pakku sighed. Everyone else just looked at him with more skepticism. Kohana, oblivious as he was, lazily wandered over to Kya and plopped into her lap, yawning against her shoulder.

"As in marriage, folks," Chunta clarified to which Kya and Hakoda perked up and shared hopeful looks towards one another.

"Marriage?" Kya mused. "You mean…"

"You guessed it. According to their horoscopes, Prince Sokka and Princess Katara will find their perfect matches this year!"

Pakku and Kanna were more experienced with such immediate exclamations from Chunta; they merely shook their heads, deciding not to get their heads wrapped around the possibility just yet. This shaman had foretold Hakoda's marriage to Kya in a similar manner several years ago, and while it did happen, it took six whole years for that to be finally fulfilled.

Noting the elders' lack of change in expression, he pressed, "Trust me. This will certainly be of interest to all of you. There is a great certainty of two highly successful marriages by this time next year."

At any rate, there was still a flare of excitement among the adults, a dash of hope that sought to get past melancholy barriers. The technical age of marriage was sixteen years, but for obvious reasons, especially those revolving around the difficulty of feeding a large family, marriage had been one of those topics that was long suppressed in Katara and Sokka's futures— even if tradition frowned upon stalling the sacrament— and presented a sense of impossibility. Hakoda and Kya didn't even think about addressing their older children with that issue because they, too, felt it would be a distraction considering their situation. While the stubbornly traditional tribesfolk around the siblings' ages were long married and had children of their own, Sokka and Katara remained as the outliers. With Katara at twenty-one and Sokka at twenty-three, their ages presented a challenge of finding suitable partners for them both. Sokka would most likely be married to a much younger woman of sixteen if he didn't find someone his age whereas Katara would go through a bit more difficulty, for it wasn't possible for her to find a suitor her age in the tribe, at least.

Even so, it happened to be that Katara's horoscope was perfectly fine from the start with her totem being the otter penguin, so there hadn't been too much of a concern with regard to her future and who she chooses to marry. Sokka's horoscope, on the other hand, presented quite a problem with his totem being the wolf which, due to its highly spiritual connotation, was extremely rare (if not impossible) for any individual's totem and meant the person possessing it would be a loner. It was also thanks to his time of birth being at midnight on the Winter Solstice (the Day of La), which was highly unusual to begin with because he was a nonbender and extremely agnostic and yet was born on the most powerful day in Water Tribe culture (that, too, which was impossible). Such conditions made things very difficult, and Hakoda and Kya had been disheartened when they'd learned of this. Now, it was unusual how the same man who spilled this to them when Sokka was no more than three was now disproving it with such a positive claim.

"Please. Like we're ready to bring anyone else into this mess," Katara sighed, but the man smiled knowingly in her direction.

"The princess seems to be most enthusiastic, so I'll start with her," he chuckled, ignoring her flustered look. "Let's see here...it seems Princess Katara's soulmate is not from the Water Tribe—"

" _What_?" Clearly Pakku, the traditionalist, had been paying attention as unconcerned as he appeared to be. "How can we accept a man who doesn't know our customs? I want my great grandchildren and all future generations to be as traditional as possible. We can't just forget our roots and—"

"Grandpa," Katara huffed. "You're taking this way too far."

"Defensive of your husband already, Princess?" Chunta joked, stirring a laugh from the others. "But don't you worry, Master Pakku. Just because the man is not Water Tribe doesn't mean he's not one of us. He is someone who will have great respect for our culture and traditions. He is someone of very strong influence politically and spiritually. Extremely powerful but nevertheless a pacifist. He has a big heart and will certainly take her to cloud nine, I assure you! He's also a bender! What more can we possibly need?"

"And where exactly is this young man?" Kanna asked with more doubt than blind optimism, which quickly changed to amusement as she saw her granddaughter trying to cover up her reddened cheeks in the dark shadows. True enough, even the slightest crack of possibility sent Katara drifting in fantasies of her future husband. Kanna shared a quick glance with Pakku, sharing his somehow increasing enthusiasm even in their skepticism.

"I can't tell you certain specifics, but I know that he will meet her in the very near future!" Chunta said.

"So Katara's going to get married and have babies? Like Cousin Sheeba?" Kohana mumbled in the haze of sleep, causing more laughter in the group. The waterbender blushed more furiously.

"Right you are, Prince Kohana," the shaman smiled. "And your brother will, too."

Again, a sliver of hope swirled in Hakoda and Kya's expressions. What more could they ask for if their son had chances of finding someone to spend the rest of his life with? The certainly couldn't imagine him as a loner wandering place to place in trading missions for the rest of his life.

"It's always a hit or miss with you, Chunta," Katara covered up her embarrassment with nonchalance. "This time, it's a definite miss. You're just trying to escape our wrath with your sweet talk."

"Suit yourself, my dear, but when it actually happens, I will come to your wedding and look at you and say, 'I told you so.'"

As Kohana sagged in his mother's arms, Kya gestured for Katara to tuck him in, and the waterbender gladly took the chance to escape more impending embarrassment.

"I thought you said Sokka would have trouble finding someone suitable," Hakoda said.

"Up until last week, that's what I thought, too, but then I received a large sum of money and an anonymous birth chart through correspondence so that I could analyze it and send it back through the messenger sparrow. The gender, time of birth, location, and other information were given. Strange to say, the young Water Tribe woman, whoever she is, has a very unique horoscope as well. She is not compatible with anyone else, either, because no matter how hard I tried, I could not calculate her totem."

"That's impossible. _Everyone_ in the Water Tribe has a totem."

"Not her. Strange to say, she appears to be a _perfect_ fit for your son. Just as Prince Sokka shows all signs of having received La's blessing, this woman shows all signs of blessings from Tui. It's a match arranged in the heavens."

They all dwelled on his words for a few moments. Kya broke the silence. "If there really is a suitable girl out there, that would be wonderful," she said. "But we have to be able to find her. She could be in any village. She could even be in the North, and if she is, consider this match broken. You know how Sokka feels about the North. And this isn't just a matter of horoscopes. Sokka has to like the girl, and she has to like him."

"It will be quite a passionate affair, I assure you...er, not like an _affair_ affair but...you know what I mean. They will be mutually devoted to one another. I even sense a very large family for them in the future! You can't say that's possible without love involved."

"But Sokka still has to like her—"

"Chieftess Kya, did you ever hear of La turning Tui down? Oh, goodness, even saying or _thinking_ such a possibility is sinful." He bowed before the Tui and La figurines in the shrine. "I examined the woman's horoscope thoroughly, and I can see that she's a very kind hearted soul, a very gentle, motherly spirit. She perfectly compliments your son. She will bring out the compassionate side of him. You will be amazed at how influential she becomes in his life. Don't you worry a bit. This will surely happen."

"I can't help but think of this as sounding ridiculously positive," Kanna said.

"How can a situation that hasn't changed the past thirty years take a sudden turn for the better overnight?" Hakoda pressed. "Are you sure about what you're saying. Chunta?"

"The charts never lie, sir. Please, give me a chance, and you'll see for yourself. The prospects really are very good this year in all areas. "

"You better hope they are for your sake," Pakku grumbled.

"The Spirits are watching from above, and they've sealed your prosperity. Nothing's going to change that."

"Leave the topic of marriage aside," Hakoda said. If nothing happens by tomorrow morning—"

"No what-ifs, Your Highness," Chunta guaranteed. "You will see for yourself."

"Well even if nothing happens, we'll have to rely on Sokka to handle it."

"Not necessary at all. Speaking of our prince, why isn't he back yet?"


	3. The Prince's Plight

**Chapter 3: The Prince's Plight**

"Stop right there!"

"Get 'em!"

"My fish!"

A pair of tribesmen with several large seal-skin sacks and even larger stomachs raced across the sheets of snow as the shrill voices of a few warriors echoed from twenty feet behind them. Gaining on the duo was a club that almost whacked their heads, but they barely avoided it and kept up their pace. They kept dodging through various objects thrown in their direction, and once they reached the forest, they zigzagged through the bare trees until they took a turn for the mountainside.

"They're headed towards the mountains!" one of the warriors yelled.

But the thieves were faster and knew of a shortcut. Contrary to the warriors' expectations, the duo took a sharp left and approached a frozen riverbed. They swiftly glided onto the fragile ice sheet, and by the time they crossed it, the voices of the men grew distant. The thieves slowed down their pace once they reached the edge of the mountain.

"You think they'll still follow us?" one of them panted.

"Nah," answered the other as he reached into a separate sack of equipment and pulled out two pairs of moccasins with whale-tooth spikes. "My guess is, they're trying to find another path around the mountain. We just need to make it across that ridge up top before they get to us," he yanked of his current shoes, "and we can take the route home. Ahusaq, keep your eyes open."

And with that, they slipped on the moccasins and trailed up the nearest ledge they could find. Heaving gargantuan breaths, they dragged themselves across the wide but monstrous slope, relying on the spikes to prevent a life-ending slip downward. The sacks of meat and fish put quite a toll on their backs, but they relied on their weight to keep them propped up. When they reached a ledge that presented a much more narrow slope, one of the thieves pulled out some rope from the equipment bag and thrust it upward in attempts to lasso it to a sturdy protrusion of rock.

"Narong, do you see them?"

"No."

"Then why do I still feel like we're being followed?"

To answer their question, a sudden sharp, vibrant trill of a flute greeted them from the top of the mountain and stopped them in their tracks. They nearly lost their grip on the rope from the suddenness of it.

"What was that?"

The lilting of the flute continued. For a moment, the tune was calm and settled, but then it took an eerie turn. It seemed to taunt them every time they took a step forward, almost as if passing an encrypted message: _I know what you're up to._

"Maybe we should get out of here," suggested Ahusaq, the more timid one of the two. "Let's just take the old route."

"If we go back down, we'll be caught."

"I think we'll be caught either way." The said thief looked up and suddenly saw smoke radiating from the top. "See? Something's going on. Would you rather slip from up here and die or go for another run and have a chance at life?"

It didn't take long for them to start trailing back down from there. So far, the warriors weren't in sight, so they thought the escape would be fairly possible if more caution was executed, but they nearly had a heart attack when a thunderous boom erupted nearby, causing a bunch of snow-glazed rocks to break off from the nearest ledge and block their anticipated pathway down. They barely dodged them and tumbled over to the next safest ledge.

"AAH!"

"Oof!"

From there, they slid down a group of rocks with their seal-skin bags tumbling behind them. They reached the ground and dropped near the riverbed with the bags plopping on top of them. The flute music began to tease them again, and when they shot their heads up, they were greeted by more smoke. _Lots_ of it swirling from the shore on the other end of the frozen river. It seemed as if someone was there judging by the sound of footsteps which simultaneously brought the smoke closer.

"Who's there?" Narong called out.

From the smoky clouds rose the silhouette of a figure with a promising build. Some sort of cloak or cape rippled from the figure's shoulders, and a low growl pierced the air, interrupting the flute.

"It's a spirit…!" Ahusaq exclaimed. "It's _La_!"

A rumble of laughter boomed forth, segwaying into a deep voice. "So you're not naive humans after all."

"He's not La," Narong scoffed. "He's just an imposter playing dress-up— _aaah!"_ One of the men ducked and pulled his fellow thief down with him as something emerged from the smoke and flew in their direction. It missed them, and they felt relieved, but by the time they bobbed their heads back up, whatever was aimed at them came swinging back with full force and knocked them from behind. They yelled and landed facedown on the ice again.

"First the Kaskan Coastline, then Métiqan Village, then Innunat, and now here," the voice went on. "You're quite adventurous."

That certainly caught them off guard. There was no way this man (if he was one) could've followed them through all of these places at a faster rate they were escaping. They could've sworn they weren't being followed up until half an hour back. And that, too, in the basking dust of twilight. Even if the man had been following them, how could he be on top of the mountain one minute and on the other side of the river the next when it took them nearly ten minute to reach down?

"H-How do you know all of this?" Narong stammered.

The smoke increased. "You fools. I am La, the All-Seeing Eye. I'm in every drop of water, every flake of snow. I am the ocean, the protector of the Water Tribe. I am the wolf, the bestower of all resources. You think I haven't been counting your mistakes?" The figure stomped his way towards them, causing the ice to quiver and form tiny cracks.

"Is it...it it really La?" Narong asked, confused. The best of his skepticism fled when he saw through the smoke that it wasn't wolf-shaped head gear he was looking at but an _actual_ head of a wolf on top of a looming figure. A clawed paw came into view, holding a giant club.

"OH MY SPIRITS, IT'S ACTUALLY LA!" Narong scampered backward.

"We're so sorry, Mr. Ocean Spirit!" Ahusaq burst.

"You have snatched food away from the innocent! Do you know what the penalty is for such a crime?"

"No! Get away!" Narong yelled.

"Please, spare us!"

"When I grab hold of you both, you will rot in the deepest parts of the sea!" the voice roared. And immediately, something struck the ice even further. It splintered much faster than before, and very quickly, the cracks began to spread towards the area they were standing in.

"No! No, please!"

"Will you ever steal again?!" La thundered.

"NO!

"Never!"

"Filthy humans! I will know if you ever lay hands on something that's not yours!"

"We will never steal again, we swear to You, Great Ocean Spirit!"

"Then begone before I swallow you whole! And don't even _think_ about looking back!"

They bowed repeatedly, banging their heads against the ice before darting towards the shore, leaving the seal-skin sacks behind on the mountain ledges. They screamed and muttered random chants invoking La's mercy as the cracks caught up to them and the ice completely gave way. They flailed in the freezing water for a few seconds before another growl from the direction of the spirit struck them back into their senses.

"If I ever see you moping around these parts, I will rip you apart and drink your blood!"

They kept screaming and swimming and eventually fleeing back the way they originally came. Once they were fully out of sight, the figure jumped into the water, shivering his way to the other side. Soon enough, he stepped out and yanked the fake pelt off of his head, revealing his warrior's wolf tail. Along with the flute, the smoke bombs, and his valuable boomerang that he held in his hands, he stuffed the pelt and the wolf-glove in his satchel and climbed his way up to where the bags of food were laying around. He swung them over his shoulders and smirked in the direction of the thieves' escape. "Suckers."

It took a ten minute search through the forest and an excruciating overuse of his searing back before a voice finally called out, "Sokka! Thank the Spirits!" It was a tribesman who'd been trailing down a different path that wound around the mountain. Behind him were the rest of the warriors from before. With sighs of relief, they darted towards him.

"Thank the _Spirits_? I did all the work here!"

The warriors chuckled as they grabbed hold of him and helped the bags down from his back carefully. Sokka groaned with relief as the weight on his back lifted with one bag at a time, even if at a tantalizingly slow pace. "Now I know how buffalo yaks feel like."

"Man, that was fast," a tribesman said. "Where'd you even come from? How'd you get 'em back so quickly?"

"A genius has his ways," Sokka grinned.

"If it wasn't for you, we would've gone home starving," said the leader of the warriors' group, Isuq. "You came just at the nick of time. What are you doing here anyway? We thought you were going to Innunat today."

"I did go, but...oh, hey, guys, be sure to leave the bag with the blue stripe, that's mine."

"So those idiots stole your fish, too?"

"About an hour ago on my way back," Sokka grunted with impatience and set the rest of the bags down in the snow before them. "I've been tracking them ever since."

Each warrior sieved through the bags and picked out the one which belonged to him. They couldn't help noticing, however, that Sokka's hunting bag was the bulkiest, easily holding plenty of fish and meats of several kinds.

"Look at you," Isuq said, impressed. "Watcha got in there, Sokka?" He peeked inside. "Woah, that's a big Arctic hen. It's been ages!"

"All for Kohana," the prince's voice softened a bit. "It's his big day tomorrow."

"Isn't that sweet?"

"Yep, now let's head on back before our stuff gets stolen again."

"But you're here with us," Isuq said. "We don't have much to worry about."

"Well if anything happen, I'm not getting your stuff back this time. How many mountains do you expect me to climb in one day?"

* * *

"You up for some freeze-dried cucumberquats, Socks?"

Sokka felt as if his stomach would grow arms and grab hold of the pack of cucumberquats and feed itself without a second's delay, but the part of him that craved taste and flavor made him shake his head. "I'm good, Masahn."

"Are you sure? You've been workin' pretty hard."

"I'll save em' for later." For another night in the event that he found himself completely stranded and starving or something. "Besides, who needs those with all this game?" He gestured to the huge sack on his back. "It's a record, I tell you. I've never caught so much in a three hour span! If I eat these cucumberquats now, I won't have enough room in me for the meat!"

"But you _always_ have room for more food," Isuq said. "You have a bigger appetite than a lion turtle does."

"And you'll go hungry again by the time we reach the village. Besides, it'll take a while for that meat to cook."

"Maybe, but I need to relish the food that's going in my mouth today." Sokka licked his lips. "I worked so hard for all this." He breathed in the aroma that taunted him from his bag. "Mmmhmmm, I can already taste the squid. Seaweed rolls dipped in fish sauce, the five-flavor soup, the sea crab noodles...Oh, man, it's been far too long!"

Before long, the others were drooling, too, their cucumberquats becoming poor substitutes to their fantasies.

"Easy there, buddy, you're making it worse for the rest of us," Masahn said.

"Say, Sokka," another warrior suggested. "You wouldn't mind if we traded a couple of our fish for a few of your delectable—"

"No can do, men," he said. "I need to rub all of this in my folks' faces. They think I eat more fish than I can catch, but _tonight_ , I'll show them who's boss! I'll show them this work of art!" He sighed. "It's also been a long time since we had a feast in the igloo. It would be nice if we had one for Kohana's birthday."

"Suit yourself, my friend."

They continued to trek through the treacherous terrain, conversing about the trip they had in store one minute and engaged in everyday banter the next. There was so much to look forward to; the trip they had in store the day after tomorrow was going to be a long one. They were headed to Ba Sing Se for an audience with the _Earth King_ , for Spirits' sake!

"Technically, my dad should be on his list of world leaders to meet up with for the annual Global Conferences," Sokka mused.

"I hear Chief Arnook of the North stopped attending those over ten years ago," a warrior said.

"Good-for-nothing Northerners, don't remind me about them."

"I'm just saying, there's no one to represent the Water Tribe. Hopefully when you meet with the Earth King, he'll put you and your dad on the list."

"I hear people in Ba Sing Se aren't as inviting as the other Earth Kingdom residents," another warrior chimed in. "One of my friends visited the Upper Ring once. Some locals ended up driving him out and calling the Water Tribe a 'nation of savages.'"

"Your friend should've shoved a few smoke bombs down their throats," the prince huffed. "With this trip, we'll show them. It's about time those stuck-ups stopped treating us like the scum of the earth."

"We owe the possibility of that trip to you. If you sent a message to the Earth King, we wouldn't have had anything to look forward to."

"We also wouldn't have been able to go on that trip if we lost our hunting bags," Masahn added. "Thanks to you for that, as well."

Because throughout the entire fifteen-mile walk back to their village, that was the unspoken despondency regarding what could've happened had they lost their hard work's worth of food. These men had families of their own. They wouldn't be able to leave for the trip if their wives and children had nothing to eat.

"I don't know how much longer this will last," Isuq sighed. "We can't keep disappearing for weeks and months on end. It's getting harder for us to stay away from our folks. My mother-in-law's trying to make my wife go stay with her in Chingan 'cause I'm never home."

"I haven't even spent a single day with my kids," Masahn followed. "I don't want things to get to the point where they don't recognize me anymore."

"Apparently, my daughter took her first steps last week. Chimali was so excited when she told me," another man beamed with a trace of disappointment. "But I wasn't there when it actually happened. I don't want them to think of me as always being absent."

"Okay, guys, don't start," Sokka said. "Look, as soon as we can arrange some sort of trading agreement with the Earth King, you guys can cuddle with your folks as long as you want."

"It's not wrong to feel that way, Socks. You'd know if you were married."

"Pssh. You married men are getting older by the second. Sappy and unrealistically optimistic. I'm forever a youth."

"Oh _really_ , Mr. Sour Single?"

"Let's just keep it easy on him, guys," Isuq said. "Poor guy's just jealous he doesn't have a lady to give him a satisfying back massage."

"Gran Gran's herbs will have to do, eh?"

"Or maybe Master Pakku can set him straight with a water whip."

They all snickered as Sokka raised his eyebrows, unamused. "Haha."

"In all serious, Sokka, why don't you consider taking the leap of faith this year? Find Katara a nice match, too," Isuq said. "Think about your parents. Can't you see it in their eyes? They want you and Katara to get settled down. If you ask me, it should've happened a long time ago. Tradition says to get married at age sixteen. Eighteen at the latest. You're twenty three. If you keep this up, you'll be twice as old as a Water Tribe girl of marrying age."

 _Sure, settling down and popping out babies according to blind tradition will definitely help the situation here._ But he didn't say it out loud. Marriage made these men quite sensitive. "Let's just get home first, shall we?"

And so they trudged along, drooling over what the ladies in their households would serve them. It was in the dead of the night that Sokka and the warriors made it to the outskirts of the village. While his buddies bid him goodnight and took the paths to their respective homes, he wandered through the snow-capped hills until he reached the path that led to his igloo. He was ecstatic, his chest swelling from so much pride in himself.

"Just imagine the looks on their faces when I show them this luxury!" he rambled to himself as he imitated the voices of his family family members. "'Oh Sokka, you're the best brother we ever had! Oh Sokka, we're so proud to have you as our son. Sokka, my boy, you got the stuff! Sokka, you're the best hunter the Water Tribe has ever had! Sokka, you're the bomb!' Ha!"

Gentle moonlight spilled over him in heaps, lighting up the darkened tribe and making everything glisten around him. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted one such glittering spectacle: a small icy hut in the far distance reflecting off moonbeams in his direction. In front of the hut were a three young children waving their arms at a man who was approaching them.

Sokka knew that man. He was part of the division of Water Tribe traders who were set to leave for Ba Sing Se with him in two days. The prince was about to call out to him in greeting when he saw the look of pure dejection on the man's face. A woman had stepped out to greet him, her hands resting on her heavily swollen belly. Her smile dwindled as she noted the disappointment in her husband's eyes and the nearly empty hunting bag which held but a few fish to last the children for the night. The children took the fish and raced inside, but the man and woman were cast by disheartenment, feeling the imminent burden of starvation.

Sokka sighed and took a look at his own sack of meats. He was pretty certain his stomach had started eating itself, and sleep was hitting him in the face like a train, making the possibility of going out to hunt again a greater problem, but he shook it all away, feeling a tug against his heart. "Fine, but I'm still keeping the Arctic hen."

* * *

"Sokka's coming," Pakku noted from the doorway upon spotting his grandson trudging along the snow. Seconds later, the old master was joined by his wife. They shared a concerned look when they saw that Sokka wasn't returning with his usual hunting bag. He only had his satchel with him, and he was holding onto a rather large skinned Arctic hen, but judging by the soft look on his face, they felt he wasn't too bothered with whatever happened, so they didn't feel the need to bombard him with questions just yet.

Well, questions about the food, at least, because Kanna straight up demanded him, " _Where_ have you been? We were so worried you weren't back yet."

"Your father and I were about to come looking for you," Pakku said. "Everything alright?"

"It's been a long day, that's all." He stepped inside and handed Kanna the meat. "Quick, Gran, hide this before Kohana sees it."

"No use hiding it when you two know every inch of the kitchen."

"Is he asleep?"

"He should be."

Hakoda, who had his injured leg sprawled out over a pelt, and Kya, who had been massaging his foot with seaweed extract, looked up at their son and breathed out relieved sighs. They too, however, noticed that he didn't carry the usual seal-skin with him.

"Sweetie, you're back."

"What took you so long, son?"

"It was a long walk home," he said, wincing as he flopped over a set of pelts.

"Where'd you even go?" Katara asked.

"Innanut."

" _Innanut?"_ they all exclaimed.

"That's twenty miles away, son," Pakku took a seat next to him.

"It's the only other place that's not as fished out as the other villages," Sokka shrugged. "You guys eat yet?"

"We were waiting on you. There's nothing in the igloo," Pakku said.

"I thought we still had some fish left."

"Well, Chunta stopped by…"

"Ugh," Sokka facepalmed. "Don't tell me you gave the rest of the fish in the house to that good-for-nothing psuedoshaman!"

"We thought you'd be back sooner with the fish," Katara said. "Clearly you didn't bring much to the table."

He groaned and reached into his satchel. He pulled out a small bag of fish and handed it to Katara. "That should be enough for right now, right?"

"You've been gone the entire day and caught only six...nine...thirteen fish?" Katara counted.

"It was all I got, okay?"

"Were you off playing boomerang again?"

"Alright, you two, don't start," Kya said. "Katara, your brother worked hard for this. Give him a break."

"I'll get started on the fish," Kanna took the bag and headed off to the kitchen.

"What happened, Sokka?" Hakoda asked. "Were you not feeling well today?"

"It's not that. A few idiots came along and stole the seal-skin sack when I was on my way back here."

"Oh Tui and La!"

"I couldn't find them anywhere. That's why I was late. I went back and caught as many as I could for tonight. Just in case."

"All the way back to Innanut?" Kya asked.

"No, just Goorin. Ten minutes away."

"This is exactly why you should've taken me with you," Katara said. "Maybe if I'd been there, I would've had your back. I even asked you if I could go with you, but what did you say? 'Woman, keep your magic water away from me. Stay in the kitchen and be prepared to cook up a feast!' Well where's the feast now?"

"If you came with me, you would've scared away the few fish that were left with your bending," he retorted.

"You're going to be gone for almost a month this time. This won't be enough to last us."

"I _know_ that, Katara. I still have tomorrow."

"You promised Kohana you wouldn't miss his birthday—"

"I'm not. I'm gonna leave in an hour or so and come back before he wakes up."

"So you're not going to sleep?"

"I'll be fine! Sheesh, can't a guy get some appreciation for once?"

"Sokka..."

The warrior's annoyance softened when he saw his little brother. "Hey, buddy!" He held his arms out as Kohana waddled sleepily into his arms. "I thought you were still asleep," the prince said, ruffling the boy's hair.

"I heard you come in. Hurry up and eat so we can play Spirits and Robbers..."

"Spirits and Robbers, huh?" he laughed. "Funny story actually. You wanna hear it?"

"After we play. I wanna be La this time."

"Maybe you should be the Sleepy Spirit instead, sport. Katara can be the evil witch."

"Yeah, and Sokka can be the smelly pentapus monster," she sneered at her flustered brother.

"Please please _please_ guys?" Kohana whined. "I've been waiting all day..."

The adults watched the trio bicker and play around, keeping in mind that had everything turned out well in the first place, Katara and Sokka would've had families of their own, complete with children Kohana's age. The predictions from Chunta had lifted their spirits so easily despite their efforts to resist his sweet talk. Convincing Katara wouldn't be too much of a problem, but Sokka, on the other hand, had always been the more persistent one. Eventually, Kya and Hakoda shared knowing looks and turned to Pakku, who nodded and cleared his throat.

"It's bedtime, Kohana," he said.

"Just five more minutes, Gramps, please?"

"You three can play all day tomorrow, okay? Go on now. Katara, go tuck him in, dear."

Once it was just Sokka and them, Kya began the much-anticipated conversation of the evening. "Sokka, Chunta brought good news with him this time."

"Did he predict another sibling for me, by any chance?"

"No, not this time," Hakoda said. "We're going to anticipate becoming in-laws very soon."

"Katara's getting married off?" he deliberately raised his voice to taunt his sister. " _Finally_ , we'll have some peace of mind in the house— aah!" He barely dodged a snowball that was aimed in his direction from Kohana's room.

"You better watch it, you idiot!"

"Alright, that's enough," Pakku said. "Sokka, pay attention."

Kya gave her son a patient look. "Chunta was saying something about a perfect match for you."

"Mom—"

"Just hear us out," Hakoda said. "Look, son, you were born on a really special day. The girl he mentioned was born on a special day, too. Both of you were born on the year of the Wolf Moon, the year of the Spirits. That's a very sacred time that no child is ever born into, and on top of that, you were born on the Day of La at midnight on the solstice. That has to say something, right?" Of course, they never told their son of the incompatibility of his birth chart with anyone else's but often stressed that his bride should be someone special.

"Here we go," Sokka sighed. "It was just a coincidence that I was born in what you think are 'sacred times.' It actually doesn't matter. And you guys know that half the things Chunta says are way out of line, right? Come on, you think _this_ is the time for me to get hitched? We barely have enough food to last us for—"

"Sokka, we know you put this off for a good reason," Hakoda said. "But if you delay any more, it's going to be difficult down the road. You're twenty three."

"You're saying it like I'm in my fifties or something."

"At the rate you're going, you sound like you'd be the type to put off your marriage until then," Pakku frowned. "Look, Chunta went ahead and compared your birth chart with that girl's. He said it was a perfect match."

"And where is this girl exactly?"

"The exact whereabouts aren't known, but Chunta suspects she's a Northerner—"

At that, Sokka stood up with a frustrated look. "The sister tribe? What makes you think I'd marry a Northerner?"

Of course, this was expected. "You certainly have grandparents who are Northern," Kanna chimed in from the next room. "If you hate Northerners so much, you might as well renounce me and Pakku."

"That's different!"

"Sokka, it's not right to think of it that way," Hakoda said. "We're all one tribe."

"It's useless to keep thinking that, Dad," Sokka said, glaring out of the nearest window. "I sent out so many requests over the past eight years, and we haven't heard back from them. Forget my efforts. You guys have been trying to contact them for the past thirty years. We even had a large portion of our warriors take up the journey to the North, and they didn't return to this day!"

"We don't know what's going on with them to jump to conclusions like that," Kya said.

"Even if that's true, they didn't take the time to at least tell us what's messed up about them. They don't care about us. They never will. We're on our own now. We can't rely on them for anything. And it doesn't matter what my freaking birth chart has to say. If I absolutely have to make babies with anyone, it _better_ not be with a Northerner."

"Just because the government's messed up doesn't mean every Northerner is—"

"It still doesn't matter. Look, guys, I don't even want to think about things like marriage, okay? I was never planning on commitment, let alone with a Northerner. This isn't the right time, and I'm not even in the right mindset for that sort of thing."

"I was in the same mindset as you are right now when I was sixteen," Hakoda said. "Things had already gotten worse at that point. But if I hadn't chosen to get married to the love of my life, you and Katara and Kohana wouldn't even exist. This is something that's difficult for everyone, Sokka. Sixteen years is young, I'm not denying it. But the point of having a companion is to figure things out together."

Sokka shook his head, his thoughts flying to the family he saw earlier. He remembered how difficult it had been for them to handle the mere _thought_ of starvation, and in all honesty, whether he actually cared or not about Northern influences and whatnot, his main concern was the fear of not being able to adequately provide. The South was not in good shape, and even if his family members were so desperate to abide by age-old impractical tradition that claimed marriage was an integral part of life, he wasn't going to fall for it if it endorsed overpopulation, poverty, and food struggles. Why drag someone else into the mess they were already in? Why would he think of bringing children into the world when there was the possibility of them starving every day so long as their economy was in shambles?

"Every man needs a woman, Sokka," Pakku said. "Just like how La needs Tui."

"Those fairytales might be good on paper, but practically speaking, they're worthless. Tui and La are just tools made up by some prehistoric caveman who was trying to get his people to multiply."

"That's enough, young man," Kya frowned and stood up. "Not another word against the Spirits. Saying Tui and La don't exist is equivalent to saying your father and I don't exist."

"Mom, that's not what I—!"

"Do as you wish," she said. "No one here's forcing you to follow tradition. It's not like we _want_ you to be happy with a loving companion to call yours. It's not like we _want_ to be grandparents or anything." She stormed her way out of the room, brushing at her tears as she left.

"Mom!"

"Kya, dear," Hakoda called. "Kya!"

"So it's my fault for being responsible?" Sokka exclaimed. "Come on!"

Hakoda shook his head at Sokka. He pulled himself up with Pakku's support and went after the chieftess in efforts to calm her down.

"Doesn't he understand we only want what's best for him?" the chieftess's words rang loud and clear from where she was. "How can he be so heartless and insensitive?"

"I'm not heartless, I'm just…" Sokka trailed off, deciding against further arguments.

"Why can't you think about us for once?" Kanna said as she stepped in with the freshly cooked fish. "You think we're stupid to suggest marriage in a time like this? If you'd been a lazy bum who did nothing to help out, you think we would've wanted you to get married? We're telling you this because we trust you're responsible enough for it. You're doing so much to establish trading partners. We trust that by the time you get settled, things will look up. We're confident that you can do this."

But as always, he flailed in his insecurities and ignored the fish that sat waiting for his attention. "You never know for sure, Gran." He grabbed his satchel and hurried out.

"Sokka!" Pakku called after him. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Hunting." Because he couldn't stand another moment here. He stepped out into the open and swallowed down his hunger, glancing up at the bright, beautiful, benevolent moon in the sky. _If you're up there, and if you're real, food is all I ask for._ He glanced back at the igloo. _At least for their sake._


	4. Prosperity at the Door

**Chapter 4: Prosperity at the Door**

Dawn was fast approaching as Sokka dragged himself up a steep hill, his sealskin pouch filled with enough fish and a bit of game to last them for the next day and a half. The only energy he was running on was from the cucumberquats he'd munched on about four hours ago, but even that was proving to be insufficient. With every passing minute, bouts of exhaustion pierced through his muscles like needles, worsened by the bites of the falling snow. His eyelids were ready to drop down to the ground rather than bear the weight of sleeplessness any longer. He managed to climb over the slope and trudged down the knee-deep snow, kicking away the surpluses of ice on his feet until he reached familiar territory. He could hear someone calling out to him and fixed his attention through the chaos of snowflakes, finally seeing someone approach him.

"Sokka! Prince Sokka!"

In the near distance was the hut belonging to Kirima and Panuq, the couple that had been on the brink of starvation up until last night. Panuq raced ahead to meet up with the warrior with a shovel in hand and cleared the way.

"Thanks, bud."

"You're welcome to stay in our hut until the weather clears up," Panuq said.

"I appreciate it, but I need to get moving."

"At least have some warm yak milk. You seem like you're nearly frozen."

It was an offer that Sokka could not refuse, knowing fully well that if he was to go hunting again later that night or get on the ship to head to Ba Sing Se, he shouldn't go with symptoms of hypothermia, so he followed Panuq through the treacherous ice. The tribesman welcomed the prince inside his humble abode and had him seated on a set of cozy pelts. The hut was a stark contrast to the chilling air outside, so much that Sokka was flushed from the warmth within seconds. Through his glazed eyes, he saw Panuq's three children look up from their board game and wave to him, simultaneously hollering, "Hey, Uncle Socks!"

"Hey, little warriors," he flashed them a toothy grin.

Kirima stepped out into the main room with cups of milk in hand and smiled in greeting, her look turning to that of immediate concern as she handed the prince the first cup. "Prince Sokka, you don't look well. Have you been hunting all night?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Not having much luck, either, huh?" Panuq asked.

"No. All the areas nearby are fished out."

"I know," the tribesman sighed. "Last night, I came home empty handed. I wasn't sure what to do. Thanks to the Spirits, a kind stranger left a generous amount of food at our doorstep with a note saying it was exclusively for us. We have no idea where it all came from or who put it there."

"Why does it matter?" Sokka said, brushing the remnants of the milk away from his lips and chin. "Just take it. Don't think twice."

"We have surpluses, sir," Kirima said. "La Himself must have blessed us with plenty, and it would be against His will if we keep it from those in need. We will be happy to share some of it with you."

The warrior was moved. "Ma'am, you're a family of five with another child on the way. You of all people shouldn't be looking to share. We have a household of mostly adults. We'll figure something out."

"Don't you worry about that, Prince Sokka," Kirima assured. "My brother will be arriving tonight. I'm sure he can take care of the hunting if need be. But I'm sure that won't be necessary. We will all have enough."

"It's okay, don't worry about us. I'll take Katara and Gramp-Gramp along tonight. Why should all the nonbenders do the work anyway?"

"But there's a partial lunar eclipse tonight, I hear," Panuq said. "No bending for at least four to five hours, and even after that, "

 _Oh. Great._ "I'll figure something out. No worries."

"Sir—"

"Look, whoever it is that brought you all this food, they wanted you to have it, alright? That La of yours would be greatly disappointed if you go around sacrificing what you got. End of discussion." He set his drained cup aside. "And another thing. I decided to take the trip to Ba Sing Se alone."

"Alone?" Panuq widened his eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"My initial plan was to take all of the men; I thought the greater number of representatives for the South, the better. But the circumstances here aren't looking too well. I'm guessing a lot more families are going through the same situation that we are, and it will be hard for us to all go when we don't have everything settled beforehand."

"But sir, it's a very important trip this time. We will be meeting with the officials in Ba Sing Se."

"I've thought through everything once again, and to tell you the truth, I highly doubt the king's officials will allow all of our crew members into the meeting room," Sokka said disconcertedly. "I don't even know if they'll have me around long enough to hear what I have to say, but I don't have a choice. I have to go on behalf of my dad, and the letter from the Earth King was addressed to me. It will be more convenient for all of us if you men stay here with your folks. That way, you don't have to worry about catching lots of game at once and I can manage something with the Earth Kingdom officials. It's one of our longer trips, too, so it would greatly benefit you if you don't take the risk."

Panuq nodded. "I suppose that would make sense...but…"

"With our situation, it's usually a strength to go out and trade, but not anymore. What matters the most is surviving, Panuq, and as of today, we've reached the point where we have to be here and take care of the village instead of leaving it to starve."

"I understand...but sir, you still shouldn't go completely alone. I bet there are other crew members who have prepared everything beforehand."

"It's okay, I can handle it. I've been on plenty of trips alone before." Sokka cast him a smile and pat his back. "Besides, I was starting to feel bad for dragging an expectant dad along for the trip. Take it easy, my friends."

He thanked them for their hospitality before stepping back out into the cold, his insides warmed but still sore from the journey and the remaining ravages of hunger. Bearing everything, he continued on his way, highly tempted to flop down where he was and sleep the day away. Before long, he saw to his relief the path that snaked its way to his igloo. His mother, who had been sitting near the entrance, waiting for him, pulled herself up to her feet as she saw him tread along the snow with heavy steps. Kanna and Pakku approached her at the door.

"This was all I could get," Sokka admitted, handing the pouch to Pakku. "I'll go back tonight and—" He was cut off by Kya's fierce hug, which he returned with a soft sigh of apology. "I'm sorry."

"No, sweetheart, it's my fault. You're working so hard and...how could I be so stupid?"

" _Mom_."

She sniffed and dried her eyes. "Come on. I made fish sticks the way you like them."

"Actually, I finished up the cucumberquats on the way," he said, his exhaustion taking over his need for food. "We might as well save the fish sticks for later. Just in case."

They tugged him inside, and he flopped against a set of pelts and leaned his head against the furs on the wall.

"Did you sleep at all?" Katara probed.

"For an hour, maybe."

"That's not enough."

"It's not like I have time for naps when I'm trying to cross the Aklavik."

"The Aklavik River?" Pakku exclaimed. "That's thirty miles farther than Innanut! You _walked_ all the way there?"

"That's why it took a while," Sokka said.

"Where else in the name of the Spirits did you go?"

"Hunkaq. A little village five miles from there. I caught what I could. The Aklavik is nearly fished out, too." A burdened look crossed over Sokka for a moment, but when he saw it reflected in the faces of his family members, he assured them quickly, "But I still have a plan. There's a snow forest off the coast of Tulit'a. I'll go there tonight and see what I can do."

"Are you kidding? That's going to take you almost half a day," Hakoda said. "And it's bandit country. Is there really no other place for you to hunt?"

 _No, not really._ "Well...I just want to try it out."

"You can't possibly walk all the way there."

"I'm taking a canoe this time," he said. "It's easier to get there by sea."

"And what about sleep?"

"I'll just have to sleep on the ship to Ba Sing Se."

"You shouldn't go," Katara said. "On the hunting trip, I mean. See what you can do around here where it's closer. Or if you want to make this difficult, let me come with you."

"Katara—"

"I can hold my own. I'm a bender."

"I'm coming with you, too," Pakku said. "I'm not too old for a hunting trip."

"You two know there's gonna be a partial lunar eclipse tonight, right?"

Their faces fell seconds afterward. "Oh no."

"So don't risk it. I'll take care of it. But I won't deny that it's still going to take me a while, so I decided to postpone the Ba Sing Se trip for a day."

"Did you tell the men?" Hakoda asked him.

Sokka took a deep breath. "The men aren't going, Dad."

" _What?"_

"I decided to go alone this time. That way, I won't have to make as many stops. And I can get to the Omashu Port faster. I also know a shortcut." He took a moment to whip out his maps from his satchel and sieved through them to find the one of the Earth Kingdom. He set the maps on the floor to where they could see. "From Omashu, I'll have to travel to Full Moon Bay," his fingers trailed along the parchment, "and from there, I'll have to take an alternate route to avoid the Si Wong Desert, but it's still doable. Then I'll have to cross the East and West Lakes—"

"Isn't that where they say a giant sea serpent lives?" Kya asked worriedly.

"That's just a myth, Mom, there's nothing to be afraid of," he dismissed. "I'll just have to cross that, and then I'll reach for the outer wall of Ba Sing Se."

"Sokka, this is the longest trip you'll ever take. It's too dangerous to go by yourself."

"I've been to Omashu alone plenty of times before—"

"This isn't the same as Omashu. And we're _not_ having you crossing Serpent's Lake," Kanna said firmly. "I don't care what you say about it. I've heard actual stories of people who disappeared along with their boats in the middle of the lake."

"It's _just_ folklore, Gran. We have no actual evidence of a sea monster in that area. I'm the one who travels around, I should know this! And even if there _is_ anything fishy about that area, what can I do about it?"

"Take the ferry. It would be the safer option," Kya said.

"It would also be the more expensive option," Sokka reminded. "Five hundred yuan for one ticket. We can't afford even five percent of that money."

Nothing could be said after that. Times were difficult and were worth certain risks. They couldn't just sit here and starve for the rest of their lives.

"No matter what happens, I'm going to have an audience with the Earth King, and I will _not_ leave Ba Sing Se until everything is finalized," he said with determined resolution. "We have so many vital resources here. We can't rot away with so much unrealized potential. It's not like all the other three nations are going to show up and hand us everything on a silver platter—"

"Sokka!"

The tone of alarm in that voice by the door caught his immediate attention, and the sore warrior forced himself up, wincing his way to the tribesman who was waiting anxiously near the entrance. It was Bato, their family friend. And he must have run a long way to get here, judging by his hoarse pants for breath.

"There are ships headed our way," Bato said.

"Ships?"

"They're not our ships?"

"No, Hakoda. They're too big to be ours."

"Oh no," Kanna gave the others a grave look. "He really did mean it when he said..."

"Who said what?" Sokka asked.

"...Lee..."

"Lee?"

"That Earth Kingdom noble, and his financial advisor, Donghai...they stopped by yesterday," Kya began. And one by one, everyone else chimed in, explaining the whole ordeal to him. The conversation regarding the new mining project, the rash confidence that Chunta displayed, the threats issued to their home, and the false notion of overnight prosperity. Bato widened his eyes in horror.

"And you're telling me this _now_?" the warrior facepalmed in exasperation. "Chunta, you fucking idiot…"

"We were going to tell you yesterday, but we didn't get the chance," Pakku said. "If those men seize our property, we'll have no choice but to move out to a different location, but where will we go if it's so hard to find fish or game anywhere?"

"It won't go that far," Sokka assured. "I'll talk it out. I know they're definitely interested in the partnership, and I'll use that to convince them. No matter what happens, all of you stay indoors."

"Wait, Sokka, I'm going with you—"

"That's not a good idea, Dad, we'll handle this." The warrior stepped out of the igloo and made his way out with Bato. Katara stubbornly caught up to them.

"They insulted Dad, Sokka. They don't deserve it."

"And Dad doesn't deserve feeling like he's not able to help in a time of crisis. If our prospects get better, then he won't have to worry as much."

"He has a point, Katara," Bato said. "Hakoda has suffered enough humiliation since his injury. It's even more degrading considering his position as the chieftain. We have to ignore certain things if we want him to be—"

"Do either of you have any idea what they even said?" she demanded. "They were...they kept saying he was useless."

"Just because they said that doesn't mean he is—"

"But are we going to just take that? We might not have money, but that doesn't mean we don't have dignity. So _why_ would you just stand back and let those idiots take the partnership in what's not even theirs?"

Sokka stopped mid-step, glowering at the ground.

"These minerals belong to the South," Katara reiterated. "And the South should have complete ownership over them. We shouldn't let mannerless brutes take over."

The prince was no stranger to everything their family had faced and all the trash talk he'd heard from several people over the years. Hakoda's injury didn't just stop at throwing the responsibility on Sokka's shoulders; it gave him an additional responsibility: to make sure he protected his dad from demeaning comments. It took the chieftain several months after his injury to get back on track, and another blow to his self esteem would be a greater cause for concern. "Look, I hate it, too, but this will be helpful in the long run. We don't have much of a choice. And if they don't listen, things will get rough for sure."

"You're not saying…?"

"I'm not letting them take away the one thing we have left. No matter what it takes. Now go back inside."

"But—!"

" _Go_ , Katara, please! It's not safe!" And he and Bato hurried through the demanding inches of ice to the Southern shores. A few other tribesmen were waiting for him, one of them peering out at a distant line of ship silhouettes crossing over the South Sea through the mist. Indeed, they were gigantic in size and much faster, too, considering how quickly they were getting closer to land. Sokka grabbed hold of a pair of field glasses and observed the ships further. As they got closer, he took note of the more subtle details.

"They're Water Tribe ships," he mused. "Really big Water Tribe ships…"

"But we don't have such big ships."

"I didn't say they were from out tribe." Because they didn't belong to their portion of men who were supposed to return from their recent trading mission. These ships were obviously not from anywhere in the South. And not only were they more elaborate in design and style but also their sails…they were not the typical blue with the image of the black wolf like Southern ships. Instead, they bore the shape of a white circle in the center.

"A full moon," Sokka said eventually. He wore a conflicted expression on his face. _The Land of Tui._

"Sokka, it's broad daylight."

"No, I mean... on their sails…they have full moons…"

The tribesman grabbed hold of the field glasses and looked on again. "Oh my Spirits...I can't believe it!" he exclaimed, rousing the interest of the other men. "I can't...oh my goodness! They're from the Land of Tui! They're Northerners!"

" _What?!"_

Bato looked through the field glasses next. "Yes...yes, they're definitely Northern ships."

"Oh Tui and La!"

"We're saved! We're finally saved!"

"Looks like Chief Arnook finally decided to get in touch with us!"

"We must inform the chief!"

But Sokka stopped them all with a wave of his hand and remained silent, staring at the plethora of Northern ships with excitement and suspicion swirling in his gut. Suspicion soon overpowered him, and he held a look of bitterness and impatience. "Not yet. We don't know what they're up to." Because how could they know for sure that the Northerners were looking to help? Over twenty five years of attempted contact didn't bear fruit; what could've happened for them to head this way now?

"Sokka, don't be cynical," Bato advised. "You should be happy about this."

"I'm only worried about what they'd want from us."

"What? No!" a tribesman exclaimed. "Don't you see? They're coming to help us out! After all these years!"

"Exactly," he said to the men. "After all these years. After ignoring us for so long...why would they suddenly turn to the South?"

"Maybe they finally got the message."

"Does it take twenty five years to process a need for help?" Sokka demanded. "Would you be okay with waiting for twenty five years for a piece of meat to cook?"

"We never know what the situation is like in the North," Bato reasoned.

"What is it with you and Dad and defending the North? I need to know for sure that they're here to help. Otherwise, I'm not falling for anything."

"Think what you want, but I can tell that this is for the best," Bato said. "Men, send for Chief Hakoda."

Within minutes, the curiosity of the entire tribe was roused, eventually blooming into excitement. The women in the village stepped out of the confines of their cooking fires and left behind their crafts midweave. They took to the streets of ice and crowded around the shores. The mist cleared little by little, giving rise to the majestic view of Northern ships. There were so many of them. They kept coming one after another, endless in their endeavors. It was almost as if the entire Northern population was making its way down South.

Sokka was persistent in his doubts. He looked on with further skepticism even after Hakoda and the others made it to the shoreline and expressed their pleasant surprise. It wasn't until they spotted the sight of additional ships, this time belonging to the Earth Kingdom, that Sokka finally let down a portion of his cynicism. Ignoring the tribesfolk's calls, he raced further ahead and barged up the watchtower. He then saw that the next huge wave of ships did indeed belong to the Earth Kingdom. These ships proudly bore the emblem of the Earth Kingdom capital. For a second, Sokka did not get his hopes up, thinking that those were most likely sent by Lee and were coinciding with the arrival of the Northern ships, but it didn't make sense to think that way because were so many Earth Kingdom ships, perhaps _too_ many to belong to any single party. And when they got close enough, he saw to his great surprise that the ones towards the back of the mass influx bore silk flags bearing the symbol of the Earth Kingdom in golden embroidery.

They _had_ to be from Ba Sing Se. They had to have been sent by the Earth King!

As if he wasn't surprised enough, he was practically flabbergasted when _another_ set of ships, this time from the Fire Nation, pierced through the horizon. The royal fire insignia loomed above its ships in the form of similarly embroidered flags. Golden scepter-like masts jutted into the skies, indicating that they come in peace.

"Those things look too furry to be ships," a tribesman panted as he made it to the top of the watchtower and succeeded in grabbing Sokka's attention.

"Where?"

"Over there, sir."

Sokka squinted his eyes in the said direction before widening them. "Those aren't ships! They're sky bison! Flying bison swimming towards us!" And what a number of bison there were with several saffron-clad monks sitting atop each of them. The Air Nomads had joined in to complete the international family that was hitting the Southern shores like a tsunami. And if the _Air Nomads_ of all people took the effort to leave their homes for any reason at all, it _had_ to be for an important one. Sokka was definitely shocked out of his wits. This was too good to be true.

"Bison…" the tribesman repeated in a daze. "So many bison, _too_ many bison. What do we do? What do we feed them, oh Spirits help us!"

Because _that_ was what was most important out of everything else. "Don't panic, buddy," Sokka shook his head in amusement. "Arrange for the kelp nets." Since kelp was the only abundant resource left and one of the only food sources (if not _the_ only food source) that was close to being vegetarian.

The people near the harbor were in another fix. How could they accommodate such a huge number of ships seeking to dock themselves up against the Southern shores? While the South was definitely a huge mass of ice and would technically be able to welcome so many ships, the glacial terrain was most concerning.

"I need all benders to form extra docks!" Sokka commanded from the watchtower. "The first round of ships will reach the shore any minute!"

Immediately, the benders got to work. They charged out into the water and froze certain portions, creating circular bases which gave rise to several different icy docks that jutted into the sea. Treacherous caps of snow were smoothed out to welcome more ships. All along the vast Southern shore were lines of expert sailors with giant ropes in hand, waiting to receive the ships and help dock them. Finally convinced of the extent of whatever was going to happen in the next few minutes, Sokka slid down from the tower, not even bothering to take the flight of stairs in his exhilarated state.

Eventually, the first row of ships approached land. Hundreds more were to follow, but for the time being, here were the leading ships. Foreign bowsprits hit the Southern ice after many long years, and out stepped groups of Northern tribesmen, wrapped in layers of billowing cloaks. The leader of the Northern division, a tribesman who was rather short for his stature, was the first to fully step onto Southern ice.

There was tensed silence for a moment as a feeling of primal brotherhood instantly took over the sister tribes. Apart from Sokka, Chief Hakoda was the only other Southerner to step forward. Before he could address the Northern party, however, he lost his balance and his grip on his crutch. The Northern tribesman raced forward and caught the chief before he could hit the ground. "Careful, brother."

Cheers filled the South and vibrated the mass of ice as the Northerner pulled the Southern chief into a warm embrace, one that Hakoda most gratefully returned. Kya brushed away her tears. Kanna and Pakku exchanged content sighs. Sokka let go of a greater portion of his skepticism, a tiny smile lingering on the corner of his lips, but it was quickly destroyed. _No problem. It only took twenty five years._ It was because of the North's neglect that Hakoda was heavily injured anyway. No need to allow sweetness to cover up the nasty bitterness of hunger.

"My dear Southern brothers, we stand before you with humbled hearts and ask forgiveness for our tardiness," the Northerner boomed, his deep voice betraying his short stature. "The Great Spirits are witnesses to the trials and tribulations we have overcome to reach the Land of La. But now we are finally here, and we are ready to serve you. And not only that. We bring with us friends from other lands."

More cheers, more chaos in the wake of such unexpected camaraderie among the great nations of the world, more so when the other ships began to reach the shore one by one. Hakoda pulled his father and son to the forefront and introduced them to the Northerner. "This is my father, former chieftain Pakku."

"Welcome, brother, to the South," Pakku greeted.

"And this is my son, Sokka. Soon-to-be-chieftain of the South."

"So this is the hero of the South we've been hearing about?" the Northern tribesman smiled at Sokka and bowed. "It is an honor to meet you, Brother Sokka."

 _Brother. Hmph._

"My gratitude goes out to Chief Arnook," Pakku said. "He sent help just in the nick of time."

The tribesman's smile dimmed a little bit, and he was overcome by a conflicted look of his own. "Actually, we were not sent by Chief Arnook. We come in the name of Her Highness, the esteemed Princess of the Northern Water Tribe."

Sokka raised his eyebrows. Hakoda and Pakku exchanged surprised looks. "We did not know Arnook had a daughter. Or any children at all."

The Northerner sighed. "In all honesty, none of us did, either, until last week."


	5. Coming Together

**Chapter 5: Coming Together**

When Chunta predicted that they would receive wealth and prosperity overnight, Hakoda and the others had believed it was just crazy talk. Now, they could only brood over how right the shaman was. They fumbled to summon the Council of Elders into a series of emergency meetings with the visiting delegates while the tribesfolk erupted with excitement once more international ships reached the shore and unloaded abundant provisions. Under the instructions of Sokka and Bato, the Southerners cleared the way for foreign masses to fill their pathways. Within an hour, the place had turned into a center of cultural fusion unlike anywhere else on the planet. Air Nomads strolled along the wild snowy plains while representatives from the Earth Kingdom tried to keep themselves from slipping over the ice. Fire Nationers repeatedly warmed themselves and the people around them while Northerners went about exploring their sister tribe. Chief Hakoda had become busier than he had ever been in his entire life seconds after the next wave of Northern ships hit the land, and with Sokka as his support, he immersed himself completely in revival efforts alongside Ivaneq, the leader of the Northern delegates.

The meeting sessions began with a complete explanation of the situation of the tribe to the international representatives. How Southern men would set out on long and daunting voyages to trade the few goods the tribe could produce, the little fish and game they could catch, the anticipated trip to Ba Sing Se or the Fire Nation capital to vent out the problems of their community and seek solutions.

And all at once, the Southern Elders became overwhelmed by the possibilities of recovery. _So many possibilities_ presented from each nation in response to the struggles endured by the Land of La. The industrial countries were the first to pitch in. Both the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation were equally interested in Sokka's proposal for the massive mining project involving several mines, which were homes to different minerals and rare gemstones. Representatives immediately stepped forward and accepted partnerships in the deals, granting Sokka most of the authority over the entire project. Other trading partnerships (some of them being tripartite deals due to the Air Nomads' lack of extensive industrial involvement) were also established to where the luxuries of fertile soil would be provided with the exchange of untapped resources from the South. Furthermore, the debt owed to Lee and Donghai was quickly resolved via a promised share of the profits, which would be earned through the Ba Sing Se partnership, with prominent Earth Kingdom cities like Omashu. Needless to say that Sokka's high-risk Ba Sing Se trip was ruled out.

An additional interest expressed by the tripartite group was tourism; like the Northern Tribe, the South was a beautiful tundra that was home to bewitching glacial scenery and exotic snow forests. And of course, the famed celestial lights (in this case, the Southern Lights) which bounced off of the icy structures and frozen lakes, encasing the land in different blends of color. One major advantage this posed was greater accessibility; the South did not have walls like the guarded North, and the treacherous, fortress-like ice at the North Pole didn't always prove to be convenient for travellers from other areas. Once properly renovated, the South Pole would be able to gain much tour-based revenue along with popularity.

On the other end of the spectrum were obviously the Air Nomads, who proved to be supportive in their own ways. They held a limited agricultural economy, and the main exports from the four Air Temples involved textiles, crafts, flora, fruits, and sweets like fruit pies, jelly cakes, and other pastries. The monastic culture bonded with the tribals over crafts, textiles, and herbs, especially, which were overseen by Chieftess Kya and the other women. Despite Sokka and the men delivering the crafts back and forth over the years, the monks became interested in the South's abundance of arctic saffron flowers lining the boundaries of its mountains. This flower type was notable for its orange pigment that colored their sacred robes and also added the saffron spice to their cuisine. Apart from herbs, crafts like prayer beads, mats, and baskets were highly appreciated so long as they weren't made of animal pelts, and along with new trades, existing trades were strengthened. On a non-profiting note, the Air Nomads were also among the ones greatly taken aback by the imagination of the celestial lights. The mountains, the coniferous forests beyond the mountain stretch, and the natural serenity attracted them as locations apt for spiritual disciplines and oneness with the beauty of nature. This would mark the influx of more monks in the near future and increase spiritual camaraderie between the two cultures.

And of course, the South's most crucial ally: the sister tribe. Northern agents had insisted on the more vital interior methods of recovery, starting with the revival of fisheries. It was astonishing how many fish had been hoisted across the world to both feed the people and stock up empty lakes and rivers. It was also arranged that several fish ponds would be set up in each village, and nutrients and arctic plants were to be introduced to increase the fish population as soon as possible. Apart from the fishery sector was the land itself, but the North held a solution for that, too. They began with unloading the imported ships, which contained crates and carriers of animals ranging from caribou to buffalo yak and various other arctic species. Heated discussions followed with regard to tighter conservation laws forbidding excessive hunting until the land was repopulated with game. What would normally take several years can be reduced to a few years if these laws were staunchly followed. Not that there would be a necessity to overhunt again with so many trading missions and provisions of meats in store.

These were the solutions presented as of now, and there were bound to be more, but already, the current plans held lots of promise despite being loads of hard work. There were plenty of Northerners, though, who had come to stick around and help out. Some even brought along their families, indicating their promise of staying as long as necessary. Sokka still held the underlying grudge that it took the Northerners this long, but he wasn't going to lie and say he wasn't moved. He still appreciated all efforts, big or small, to the fullest, and as the hours passed by, his pessimism slowly lightened.

So much had been planned in the course of a few hours. So much was to be said and done, so many changes were to take place in the near future involving so many different groups of people...and yet, _very little_ was mentioned regarding the person behind all of this: the princess of the North. The ever-cynical side of him was not sure if he should label these somewhat-extravagant efforts as her ways of showing off...or if he should really be awed by the prowess of her helping hand.

 _How could the members of a tightly knit community not know they have a princess?_

It was a question that kept distracting him throughout the various meetings despite every ounce of his being telling him to focus on the golden opportunity. He couldn't keep from noticing the fact that the Northerners they were willing to carry out her commands to every last letter, either she had to be ruthless (which didn't seem feasible if she arranged for such plentiful, generous opportunities) or Arnook had to be ruthless in making sure her orders were carried out (which also wasn't feasible considering he concealed his own daughter from the world for some reason). It's not like he could pry for answers or explanations; clearly the situation demanded of other things and moreover, the Northerners obviously didn't know much about the princess given the one week they knew of her existence.

"So are we all on board with the renovations?"

Since renovation went hand in hand with improving tourist prospects, Ivaneq had proposed that the grandeur of the South could be intensified if the leaders of the tribe allowed for it. This included expanding the chief's current igloo or constructing a vast palace in its place. Of course, the latter option was favored. Along with that would rise the possibility of a culturally diverse hub in the form of organized arctic plazas and open bazaars selling intricacies and delicacies, and it was needless to say that everyone in the chieftain's family along with the Council of Elders were very supportive of the idea.

"But it seems like the prince is not interested."

A contemplative Sokka jutted out of his thoughts and looked up at Ivaneq and the other Northern delegates. Kya placed a hand over her son's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm fine."

Ivaneq was not entirely convinced. "Do you really favor the construction of the Southern Water Tribe Royal Palace, Brother Sokka?"

"Yes, of course. Sounds good."

"He's exhausted," Kanna pitched in. "He'd been hunting all day yesterday and overnight."

"If that's the case, then it's alright, but if there really is a problem regarding the renovation plans, please do let us know. There is no pressure or force in this matter." Ivaneq turned back to the group. "You see, we were hesitant to ask this directly. Her Highness repeatedly advised us to be considerate of your egalitarian values. She finds your solidarity with the community truly admirable."

And that was it. The only time she was referenced throughout all of their meetings. It was no surprise if she was fascinated given how sheltered she may have been. Sokka couldn't imagine how it would've been if he or Katara had been sheltered in such a way. He couldn't envision a world in which the soon-to-be-ruler was completely suppressed from public eye.

What a life that would be.

* * *

By the time the noon sun climbed high up in the Southern sky, the meetings concluded for the day. Several guests crowded around in Chief Hakoda's igloo to organize the birthday celebration of the South's younger prince. It was an impromptu event of such a vast scale. All morning, Kohana had been running around, adorned by the shark-tooth necklace crafted by his brother and the new parka made by his grandmother. He had been stuffing his mouth with imported specialties like the roast duck prepared by the "aunties with metal bracelets" and the fire flakes gifted by the "uncles with fire hands." He also crammed sweets into his mouth and smearing his face and his friends' faces with pastry icing. He and his friends have also been licked several times by the sweet-toothed lemurs which had hung around their igloo, and to their greatest delight, the kids were even given several rides on the sky bison. Afterwards, they went sledding with Sokka, Katara, their friends and their friends' children. It was mostly a teaching moment for the young prince; he was the one who ended up showing the foreigners the magic of Antiman's Peak, laughing every time they fell out of their sleighs with hysterical screeches and landed in heaps of body-freezing snow. Later that day, Sokka and Katara also took him to Lady Nagara's igloo where he could pick out his favorite husky.

"Alright, bearcub, listen up," Sokka said. "If we're gonna get a snow husky, we have to make sure we can take care of it, alright? From now on, you're gonna be the one that feeds it and takes care of its every business. No asking your big brother to take them out on walks and potty breaks and—"

But Kohana obviously wasn't listening as he chased around the three available huskies and played with them. "Sokka, can I pick out another one?"

" _Two_ little monsters?"

"Oh come on, _Dad_ , Dad said he can get another one if he likes," his sister frowned. "It's his birthday, Sokka, let him choose. Now that we can actually support two huskies."

Kohana giggled as the puppies pounced over him. "Actually, can we have all three of them, guys?"

" _What?!"_

"He's welcome to take them all," Nagara smiled. "No matter how many riches we get in one day, I know I still can't support them all. No one else is coming up to buy one."

"Don't fuel the flames, Aunt Nagara," Sokka sighed. "One husky, Kohana. _One._ "

"But what about its brothers and sisters?" Kohana pouted. "Oh, and what about their mommy and daddy? They will be really sad without their mommy and daddy."

" _Five_ huskies?"

"Sliding up the scale, aren't we?" Even Katara was looking quite concerned at this point.

"Pleasepleasepleaseplease _please_?"

Eventually, the trio ended up each holding a husky in their hands while the mother and father huskies trailed behind them. Everyone knew that Kohana would most definitely not be the one to take care of their newest additions to the family.

"Can't say no to the birthday boy, huh?" Sokka turned to his sister. "Have fun cleaning up all the husky poop, Katara."

"You were the one who still paid for them, so you have fun with that."

But at least the birthday boy was appeased. Or so they thought. "Hey, Sokka, imagine how it would be if we had a lemur _and_ a sky bison—"

"Are you trying to open up a zoo right now?"

"Can we at least have a sky bison?"

" _That_ is a definite no."

"But I waaaant one!" he stomped his little feet and jumped up and down, making cracks in the ice. "I want a sky bison! I _never_ get to have anything I want!"

And with the rest of the adults caught up in other business, there was no one else who would be able to calm the boy down.

"You promise? You promise we'll get one?"

"I said I'll ask one of the monks—"

"And the lemur?"

"What, no! You just said—"

"I want a lemur, Sokka, you _have_ to promise—!"

"Okay okay—"

"Say you promise!"

"I promise I will ask—"

"No, promise me you'll get them—"

"I can't get anything for you if I can't ask!"

By the time Kohana's feast had been arranged, complete with the arctic hen his brother had caught for him, Kya had given him a bath twice to rid him of sky bison and snow husky saliva, and by the end of the day, his favorite treats from each of the other nations ended being the fruit pies offered by the "grandpas in yellow-orange robes" who were amused by his requests and let him keep a lemur and an unassigned sky bison pup much to Pakku's near heart-attack. Either way, there were no long-lasting oppositions; it was a day of overabundance and camaraderie. It was all like a dream.

"Now now, nothing's over just yet," a Northern representative smiled as he stepped into the igloo, followed by a few attendants holding several packages. "The princess has sent gifts for your family, Chief Hakoda."

Since when did Her Mysteriousness have time to think about the royal family? Sokka would've imagined her being fed up from having made so many preparations. _Show off._

"As if she hasn't provided enough for us as it is," Pakku said. "Now gifts, too?"

"We're not sure if we can handle too many benefits in one day," Kya followed, her eyes widening when she received her package— the biggest of them all standing at six feet long and five feet wide. "Oh my, this is..." When the Southern chieftess opened the package, she was overwhelmed to the extent that her eyes became brimmed with joyous tears. Standing before her was a shrine customized to fit the two elegantly statues inside of it. One of them was a black marble statue of La, a figure of a handsome, surprisingly pleasant man in black robes possessing a strong build, claws, fangs and beaded eyes. The second statue was made of white marble and was sculpted in the image of a beautiful white-robed goddess holding a torch: the Torch of Wisdom hailed by the scriptures that Kya repeatedly immerses herself in. Both statues were marked by the design of a koi fish of the opposite neutral color on their chests. The La figure held the design of a black-spotted white koi fish on his sternum, and the Tui figure bore the symbol of a white-spotted black koi fish on her bosom. The rays of light from outside poured in through the windows and fell upon the marble sheens, making the statues glisten.

"This is beautiful!" Kya brushed at her dampened face and laughed with excitement as everyone else gawked at the gift. The chieftess clasped the statues to her heart and ran her fingers over the intricate details, placing their previous tiny statues into the new shrine and running around to rearrange the prayer room.

"It's a very good omen if the Spirits find their way to one's home," Kanna said with a grand smile of her own.

Sokka caught himself looking on with a grin as well. He would've rolled his eyes and shrugged off what he believed was pointless religiosity had it not been for the look of utter happiness in his parents' faces after such a long time. For that, at least, he had to give the princess credit.

"This is for Princess Katara," an attendant announced. Turned out Katara received a hand-crafted purse of an exquisite indigo hue complete with lavender designs. The purse housed many different compartments for travel convenience. There were also sealskin pouches designed to hold water.

"This is such a beautiful color," the Southern princess ran her fingers over the purse. "And these pouches are really convenient."

More gifts came into view. "This is for the little one," the attendant said. "Oh, and this one, too. And this one. Wait, one more..." Several packages were placed before the young prince, who ripped open the wraps one by one and let out excited squeals. From water shooters to plush toys to storybooks and Spirit roleplay masks and costume sets and regal clothing, the boy had them all and bounced all over the place. At this point, he had completely stopped nagging his older brother for more pets.

"Look, Sokka! I even got my favorite mask! The panda seal!"

"That's great, sport."

"How does the princess know we have another son?" Hakoda asked.

"The last letter sent by Prince Sokka five years ago expanded on the difficulties of providing for the young with resources running low. In that conversation, he briefly mentioned his infant brother."

 _She took that one detail and turned it into all this?_ But there were zero complaints overall. The igloo which had trouble housing even a few more fish than necessary to start the day now held piles of intricate decorations and gifts, and everyone couldn't help but be grateful. The princess sure knew how to satisfy everyone. From different kinds of jewelry and exotic scents and perfumes to layers upon headdresses, layers of coats, and other latest Northern fashions, everyone in the family, even Bato, their family friend, received plenty, specified and nonspecified. Well, everyone except Sokka. He obviously had a share in the more general gifts, but so far, he was the only one who didn't have a gift named specifically for him.

 _Not like I was expecting one anyway._

"Ah, here it is. The last one." It was a thin package about five feet in length followed by a scroll canister adorned with a fancy blue ribbon. Sokka looked from the gift to delegate holding it out to him.

"Her Highness made sure not to leave anyone out."

Sokka took the package and the scroll but didn't peer into either of them. He quirked his eyebrows. "Does Her Highness have a name?"

The man shifted uncomfortably as did the other Northerners. "We don't know it."

It got really quiet, and it was easy to tell that Hakoda and the others had reached a level of curiosity that paralleled Sokka's. How could they not know her _name_?

"Well it won't hurt to call her Tui for now," Chieftess Kya said with a warm smile. "She helped us just in the nick of time. Just like Tui would."

* * *

By nightfall, hundreds of tribesfolk and foreign friends gathered at the center of the city beneath the aurora sky. While the colors danced vibrantly over them all, concealing the lunar eclipse and bringing awe and beauty to the scope of a once-troubled tribe, Hakoda struggled his way up with Sokka and Ivaneq as support in the middle of the crowd, drawing on all attention.

"We gather here tonight to celebrate the reunion of not only the sister tribes, but also the world's beautiful cultures and peoples," Hakoda said. "Never has the South looked so complete and filled to the brim with love and support, and for your helping hands, the Land of La is eternally grateful. Let us highlight the brave leaders of all of our empires for their wonderful contributions: the admirable monks of the Air Nomads, the honorable Lord Iroh of the Fire Nation, the esteemed King Kuei of the Earth Kingdom, the respected Chief Arnook of the Northern Water Tribe and most importantly, the blessed Princess of the North whose correspondence brought us all together. May the Great Ones smile down upon all of us. Let us embrace our differences with pleasure, and let us bring to light our universality. Let us rejoice in peace and lifelong happiness as one family, one community. Let us forever be bonded by kinship, friendship, and fraternity. In the name of Tui and La! In the name of Yin and Yang! In the name of harmony!"

"Here here! Here here!"

Applause rang throughout, and within moments, everyone was caught up in warm exchanges and welcome greetings. Families stood in camaraderie with those from their sister tribe. Groups from all four nations sat around and chatted as if they'd been best friends since forever. Northern youths began pursuing the young Southern beauties. Regardless of the former tensions and disconnections between the two tribes, reunion sparked wonder and relief. Like a koala sloth cuddling a tree in the middle of a menagerie, Kohana was curled up next to his huskies and bison with his lemur dozing in his lap. Katara and her friends, who had already begun expanding their circle to accommodate the newcomers, sat close together, relishing the colorful sky. Even Kanna and Pakku, the most experienced and the more wary than not, were finally convinced that none of this had been a dream and that things were really looking up.

"Ahh, it's been so long," Hakoda said, his arm around his wife's waist as he basked in the fragrance of the cologne he'd adorned himself with. "Do you remember that day, dear?" He reached for his wife's lips with his, making sure the glacier behind them hid them from view. "I was wearing this same type of cologne the night we first made love."

"Hush up," she whispered. "Do you want everyone to hear?"

"What? We're far away."

Her hand sieved through his hair. "Not far enough."

"Dad, have you seen—" the Southern prince nearly gagged at the sight of his parents caught in a heated make-out session. He cleared his throat, causing them to jerk away from each other.

"It would be really embarrassing if I had another sibling at this age, so let's keep this a family-friendly atmosphere, shall we?"

Despite it all, though, he had never seen his parents be this happy. He had never seen Gramps and Gran Gran be so optimistic for longer than a few minutes. He had never seen his sister roam the South without the fear of their family sinking deeper into destitution. He himself had never felt more relieved from a huge weight that was somewhat pulled off of his shoulders. Even so, he felt lighter. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to fully enjoy the gifts of the night. Was no one really going to ask about the heir to the North? Who exactly was the woman who made everything around him land in cloud nine so quickly? Who was the princess who gave their tribe a slice of the entire world and handed them hope on a silver platter?


	6. The Princess of the North

**Chapter 6: The Princess of the North**

 _It's only a matter of curiosity._

At least, that's what he told himself as he snuck away from the celebrations and headed towards the decked Northern ships. He was determined to get his hands on the Northern princess's list of proposed Southern revival efforts. It was, after all, most likely the only document anyone had in association with someone as locked away from the world as her.

It was an impulse that Sokka couldn't help. It was extremely hard to imagine a life contained simply in the limits of home. Nearly every day since his early adolescence, he'd taken to the seas, travelled on behalf of the tribe, seeing new places, meeting new people, catching glimpses of different cultures. He had never handled the concept of staying put or settling in one place, much less settling down in life due to his absolute love for freedom, so naturally, his mind was still boggled by the claim that the Northerners didn't know they had a princess. And even if they didn't know at first, _now_ that they did, shouldn't they be looking further into the matter? Had Chief Arnook really refrained from announcing the birth of his daughter? News of an heir's birth should be a cause for intense celebration, right?

But no one ever talked about these things. Instead, the Northerners were drinking and partying away with their Southern brothers, reveling in the reunion of the tribes, not mentioning (or perhaps not caring to mention) the person who made the reunion happen. Even Chieftess Kya and Chief Hakoda were too lost in the festivities to ask questions and prod for answers. The level of aid the South received and the utter _lack_ of attention the North's princess was receiving made no sense, in all honesty. Shouldn't such opportunity be used by the North to at least _glorify_ their "newly-discovered" leader?

 _Guess I'm not the only one who's underappreciated at times._

He reached the nearest docks and looked around. Not many people were there, only the few trickles of Northern tribesmen who lounged lazily near the bowsprits. He nearly slipped on something in the snow; a piece of paper, most likely an old pamphlet that had gotten buried beneath the snow under the influence of stampedes back and forth from the ships the past several hours. Thinking it to be a piece of trash, he picked it up to toss it in the nearest trash crate...only to pause when he caught a glimpse of words of interest: _unknown daughter of Chief Arnook_.

With furrowed eyebrows and a wild yanking of his gloves, he fumbled to unfold the torn pamphlet, reading what appeared to be an article heading and the first sentence of an otherwise torn-apart piece of parchment:

 _Hidden Princess_

 _The North Pole's greatest discovery as of yet is the unknown daughter of Chief Arnook..._

When he heard voices around him, he quickly slipped the paper into his coat pocket. _There must be more where this came from._

At this point, the aurora had dulled down for a moment, letting darkness temporarily shoot through. Luckily, the bowsprit of the nearest Northern ship was lowered, and Sokka took the chance to sneak his way into the ship. He grabbed another crate that was resting a few feet away, threw anything he could find inside of it, and hurled it over his shoulder, assuming the gait of a tired attendant to make himself look like he was doing something productive. He kept his face hidden behind the crate, but people were too drunk to care more than they should, so that was a plus. When he finally reached the empty cabin area, he discarded the crate and let loose. He pulled out the piece of paper from earlier and searched through all the papers he could find sprawled out on board. Several frantic minutes later, he found nothing and decided to step deeper inside.

 _Look at you sneaking in like a thief_ , the more prideful part of him rebuked him for doing this incognito; if he asked, he would probably get the information he wanted or at least be given a nice copy of the article. Even so, he knew that people would be curious as to why the _prince_ of the South was so curious about the _princess_ of the North to the extent of exploring a Northern ship for anything that resembled a trace of her, and knowing his family members and their desperation to get him hitched, they would be more than willing to take this observation and spin it into a romance. _Geez._

"'Oh, Sokka should totally consider her,'" he rolled his eyes, squeakily mimicking his parents as he slipped into an open room. "Stupid matchmaking culture. 'They don't need to see each other or know each other, they'll be so perfect and wonderful and will have lots of babies—"

"Your Highness?"

" _Gah!"_ He ended up knocking over a few cleaning supplies nearby and landed on his stomach on top of a few barrels.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, sir!" A calloused hand belonging to a middle-aged man reached out to help him up. "I didn't mean to startle you."

Sokka brushed at his clothes and cleared his throat. "That's fine, sir…"

"Call me Zhi, Your Highness."

"No need for formalities. Sokka's fine."

"Ah, yes, Sokka," the man smiled. "Forgive me, but I was not informed that you would be visiting our ship. Did you have an escort?"

"Um...no, not really. Everyone's too distracted, I guess. What about you? Not feeling the party vibes?"

"I was just on my way there. I had a couple of errands to run for Captain Ivaneq. Is there anything I can assist you with? You seem to be quite...lost..."

Obviously. Sokka just hoped he didn't seem cunning or conniving to the crewman. "Yes. I'm actually here to, uh, have a look at…" _Leader, say leader. Gender neutral._ "...your leader's list of revival plans for the South. Maybe a document or something of that type?" _Several documents, maybe?_

"Did Chief Hakoda ask for them?"

"No, uh…I wanted to…It's for confidential purposes." Or to satiate his inner detective trying to piece the puzzle together.

"I see. Please, come with me."

Zhi led him towards a long hallway and up a flight of stairs, eventually taking him to a room that was closed to one corner. There were a few containers of drinks, too.

"Could I interest you in some gin, Sokka? It's your first time on our ship. And you don't look like you've had your share of drinks."

"No, thanks. Feel free to help yourself, though."

The man proceeded to pour himself a drink. He then reached for a collection of many different documents and placed the papers before the prince. "These are the originals."

"Other copies are fine, Zhi."

"There's only one set of copies. The ones the princess wrote."

Sokka raised his eyebrows as he observed the thickness of the paper stack. Easily up to forty or fifty pages of material. "The princess wrote all of this herself?"

"Yes, of course."

"She doesn't have scribes?"

"There are plenty of scribes in the palace, but you see, no one is allowed to contact her in any form. That is why she wrote all of this herself. Frankly, she had all of this prepared before...before we knew we had a princess to begin with."

So did this mean...this was her first set of orders ever? The first project she undertook at least publically? The prince looked up at Zhi, not oblivious to the look of concern on his face.

"There was also limited time for the scribes to copy down all the terms," the man added. "There were many connections we had to make with people from different parts of the world, and waiting for the scribes to make copies didn't seem feasible given the urgency of the situation. Several notes have been taken, though, and all tasks have been divided among the teams. Everything is derived from this packet."

The prince reached out and turned to the first page, instantly greeted by a sweet fragrance and an entire page dedicated to an invocation to the Spirits.

 _In the name of Tui and La, merciful upholders of civilization._

If anything, there were three things he learned from these few seconds alone. One: She's religious enough to rival his mother. Not really a surprise, of course, since the princess was Water Tribe and a Northerner at that. Two: She's well-versed in calligraphy. She had to be. The amount of skill it took to write even this much requires lots of effort.

Three: She smells like moonflowers and spices.

Sokka kept breathing in the fragrance as he skimmed through the documents, quickly absorbing the format of the plans. There were tasks divided according to division and specialty, all of them complete with contact information of trading partners from around the world who were also specialists in those divisions. All the problems of the South highlighted in the document had references in the margins, alluding to specific page numbers from the massive letter Sokka sent to the North a couple of years ago. Before he had lost faith in the North, that is. It felt nice to know that someone actually read it and was considerate of every little detail…

 _Or just took the pains to go extra to make the North look good._ His inner cynic wasn't leaving anytime soon, but neither was his curiosity.

After several more minutes of examining the list, Sokka stood up and refilled Zhi's cup with more gin, wordlessly indicating a much-needed talk. "What exactly do you mean when you say you didn't know you had a princess?"

The man sensed the prince's enthusiasm despite surface-level "mundane" curiosity. "It's a very big deal, yes, but really, she was so sheltered and all…it was shocking, yes, but not totally unexpected. Chief Arnook was most likely trying to protect her. You know how overprotective fathers can be with their daughters sometimes. Maybe he was waiting for the right moment to introduce her..."

But Sokka was not at all convinced. He pulled out the piece of the article that he found. "Well according to this, she is the greatest discovery of the North as of yet. Doesn't seem like it's normal the way you're saying it is."

Zhi gulped down the rest of the contents in his cup, the attempted lightness in his demeanor dissipating. Concern took over. "It's...it's a very long story."

"I know, but I got all night if you're willing to tell me."

* * *

Zhi was well into his fourth cup before he licked his lips and got past his reluctance to speak. He slouched on a chair across from the prince and leaned against the wall, staring absently at the torches around them. He began with describing the severe tensions in the North ever since the reign of Arnook's father, Chief Aklaq. Aklaq was apparently not a very religious man. That in itself wasn't a problem... what _was_ the problem was that he was in charge of a very religious North, which meant he had to be considerate of the people's values. He had always been focused on secularizing the North and was very insensitive to the spiritual needs of the nation. He was critical of religion so much so that he began to upset many right-wing groups at the time. He even passed laws forbidding certain practices which he believed were purely superstitious.

It was understandable why there would be problems. Sokka was not religious, either, and was just as critical of religious beliefs. At the same time, one of the first lessons he learned is to stay out of the religious sector and not interfere on the tribe's practices. There was, after all, a quality of unity that came with religious fervor, and that in itself couldn't be denied; in fact, it was crucial for the tribe's emphasis on the community's wellbeing.

Aklaq, of course, did not have that discernment. What he additionally did not realize was that even though he tried to eradicate religious activities on the basis of preventing ignorance and harm...his methods were actually more harmful. Whether or not it was useless to circumambulate around the Sacred Temple five times instead of four, such things didn't have a profound effect on others as did the increase of industrial involvement. With secularization and personal gain came increased divisions between classes. Temples that initially welcomed all kinds of people began to adopt regulations on the basis of class difference. Those who gave greater amounts of donations were treated as honored guests while the poor were cast out. Northern waters were poisoned by individual benefit, and in the process, discrimination of all kinds came to the forefront. The Northern Council of Elders and the chieftain's cabinet members could do nothing, for Aklaq was rather persistent and ruthless. There were times he meant well, though, like with the increase in trade with other nations, but his intolerance of religion was ultimately his downfall. Conservative fanatics ended up assassinating him and his wife, which left the responsibility of chiefdom to Arnook. Arnook was thirty-eight years of age when he and his wife, Ahnah, ascended the throne.

"I heard he came to power around the same time that my dad did," Sokka said.

"Yes. And whether or not you want to believe this…that was actually the last we heard about the South."

Sokka frowned. "What?"

Because by then, the conservatives had taken precedence in the Council and the cabinet right after Arnook came to power. At that point, these conservatives were a political organization: the Religious Nationalist Party, or simply the Nationalist Party. They claimed to be religious, but really, they were elite hypocrites. They spiralled into the same classist and gender divides, and although they didn't get rid of Tui worship, they still corrupted the tribe's egalitarian ways of life. They endorsed the superiority of men and the subordination of the 'impure' women enough to claim that La is theologically superior to Tui and even that Tui was a construction by heretic women. The ideas did not sit with the community at all, but regardless, they were too powerful to be dismissed despite their own fanatical heresies. Eventually, some of their agendas knocked Tui off of the picture altogether, endorsing La as the one true deity of the Water Tribe. In that sense, they were using religion to manipulate people's treatment of the underprivileged, the nonbenders, and especially the women. Ritualistic Tui worship survived, but by then, many people were starting to forget the Mother Spirit. Practically, this meant the rise of mistreatment and abuse of women, even young girls and children. It meant an increase in crime rate as rape and female infanticide began cropping up.

"And the people thought those idiots were better?" Sokka demanded, slamming his fist on the table in fury. "Didn't anyone retaliate?! What about that useless ass you call a leader?"

Several moments of silence followed, but not out of Zhi taking offense. Sokka's anger was definitely relatable. "Alright," the crewman said. "I think it's best if we stop the story—"

"No...sorry, sorry, I…"

Zhi strained a smile. "I'm not offended, sir. The anger you have is righteous. I only mean that it would be hard for you to listen if—"

"No no, I'll be fine." He refilled the man's cup. "Continue."

Arnook was useless. This was a widespread opinion, and even Arnook was aware that people were thinking this way. But if anything, the chief was not like his father. He was religious to an extent, but for the most part, he was not as concerned with the religious sector. In fact, he was completely detached and was willing to interact with the Nationalists for the sake of preventing more violence. He gave them many liberties out of fear alone. While Aklaq wanted to regulate religion, Arnook swung to the opposite end of the spectrum and completely ignored religion. This is why it was so convenient for the Nationalists to suppress voices which sought to bring back social equality.

"I remember when Arnook stopped passing laws altogether," Zhi said, rubbing his head. "The Nationalists had taken over by that point and began to inhibit the North's interaction with other countries and the sister tribe. We were only allowed correspondence with the conservative Fire Nation cities and certain parts of the Earth Kingdom, but no matter what, we were not allowed to venture out of the North for any reason. We were especially forbidden to contact the South. The Nationalists feared that there would be an uprising and a call for social equality under your more liberal influence."

"They can pass laws, but they can't stop people from still doing it."

"But they can certainly intercept our letters and kill the people who step out of line. There were entire families who wanted to come down South to escape the situation...only to suddenly disappear the night they tried to leave. There was continuous watch all the time. Correspondence was highly regulated, too. All messages from the South were intercepted, so Arnook couldn't even read them even if he wanted to. It's not like he could do anything anyway. He was a rather paranoid man for most of his reign. His parents were brutally murdered. He lived in fear of being assassinated if he made one wrong move. He was constantly worried about protecting his wife; Chieftess Ahnah had been the most vocal in resisting some of the Nationalists' policies."

Which, too, was understandable to an extent. Living a life of fear would make anyone turn out useless.

"Gradually, we stopped hearing about the chief and chieftess," Zhi said. He described how Arnook increasingly kept his life private. The chieftain limited the number of visitors to the palace, and eventually, it got to where he dismissed many of the servants save for a select few loyals. He made them swear oaths on sacred texts so that they would maintain confidentiality about his life. There would be no way the tribe would know even if Ahnah got pregnant or already had an heir. Arnook certainly didn't announce anything, and the tribe just assumed that he didn't have heirs.

"It was around that time when he met his future right-hand advisor, Khasiq." Zhi's eyes darkened with hatred. "Prominent new member of the Nationalist Party who quickly climbed his way to the top. But he was not like the other headstrong Nationalists. He was a hardcore conservative, yes, but the friendship he made with Arnook was highly unlikely. Very tense, too; you never knew when Khasiq would backfire and chop the man's head off. Not to mention, Arnook became a slave to alcohol during that time." Zhi frowned. "And one night, we were all shocked to hear pivotal news after years of isolation from our leader: Ahnah had passed away."

Sokka widened his eyes. " _What?"_

"Reasons unknown. There were no proofs to indicate it was illness, no proof to indicate it was murder." Zhi was getting angry now. "It was Khasiq! It had to be him, damnit! It wasn't made obvious but it _was_. And yet, that fool continued to trust Khasiq with his life. Damn him! Damn them all!"

To cool that anger came the man's eighth cup. Sokka reached forward. "Okay, I think you've had enough."

"Nonsense, I can handle it." He went on to pour himself some more. "There still hadn't been any talk of Ahnah being survived by an heir...but now it makes sense. Why Arnook would be stupid enough to act as if Khasiq had nothing to do with it. By then, Arnook _did_ have an heir." Zhi's voice softened. "He had a baby girl...and during a time of widespread infanticide, too. She was Arnook's last connection. She is the last hope for the tribe. And to keep her safe...he couldn't announce her existence to the world. Even if she wouldn't be outright killed, she would be targeted. And not just because she was his daughter."

"Khasiq wanted the throne," Sokka finished. He shared a wild look with Zhi. "It's obvious. But...in that case, why would he not target Arnook himself? If the Nationalists were really influential and wouldn't be questioned, why…?"

"I don't know. I don't know everything that happens behind those walls. But I can tell you that even if Arnook was thought of as useless, there was still respect for him in the tribe. His paranoia was understandable, and there was already dangerous outrage in response to the chieftess's death. She was, after all, one of the very few influential people who stood up against the Nationalists at any given chance. If her death sparked outrage, finishing off the chief would give leeway for a mass uprising, especially from the peasant classes. It was already tasking to hold off the smaller peasant revolts during that time."

"But the princess...how was it possible to keep her hidden? Khasiq had to have known. You said...you said he was 'friends' with… Arnook couldn't have kept his wife completely hidden for nine months."

"Only the Spirits know what really happened," Zhi said wearily. "But somewhere along the way, Arnook and Ahnah had a daughter, and somehow, her birth went unnoticed."

"He must have sent her away from the area, then."

"No," Zhi said. "Ironically, he hid her within palace grounds. It sounds stupid, but it makes sense. People were not allowed to leave the city or transport things to places other than other areas of the North. If Arnook had made a fuss about sending something or someone away from the city, the Nationalists would've been suspicious."

"But it's too dangerous either way."

"Not if you play superstition against people like them. The Forbidden Chamber was an example of that."

"The what now?"

"The Forbidden Chamber," Zhi explained. "It's located in the eastern direction of the palace. It's the only part of the palace that is completely blocked off from the main building. It's been rumored to be haunted during the time of Aklaq's reign; many people claimed that the Spirits have been displeased with Aklaq's regime and lack of spirituality and haunted those chambers as a result. Whether or not that's true, no one can really say, but the conservatives believed that La, being the Wrathful Spirit He is sometimes, must have really haunted the place for revenge, so no one was allowed near the eastern portion. It seems Arnook didn't believe in things like that...or maybe he had peace rituals conducted in the name of the Goddess because he decided to hide his daughter there. It was the safest place...well, from the Nationalists, at least."

Could it really be that such a dire situation, such a thin thread of survival, was broken instantly with the princess's efforts to help the South? "How...how did you find out about her?"

"A little more than a week ago, a woman covered in veils and robes was spotted crossing into royal grounds and trying to stay hidden in the dark. She was followed closely by a group of men; she had to have been avoiding them. The guards managed to capture and detain the men, but they stopped following the woman when they saw her disappear into the eastern wing so casually, almost like it was her home or something. They didn't dare go further, thinking she wanted to hide there to escape and that she made the wrong choice in doing so. They thought that would be the last they would ever see her."

"What did she look like?" Sokka asked.

"Like I said, she was apparently all covered up," Zhi answered, and he elaborated that immediately, the rogues who had been captured were recognized as traffickers trying to lure Water Tribe women and sell them to landlords in the upper rings of Ba Sing Se. This incident had caught the attention of Professor Zei, a cultural anthropologist from Ba Sing Se University who had practically snuck into the North as a stowaway on a cargo ship and had only recently obtained legal permission to explore the tribe. He was determined to find out what happened to the mysterious woman and dared to step into the eastern wing the same night of the incident. The very next morning, several pamphlets had been sold across the streets, rampant with his description of a conversation he heard, of the mysterious woman who did, in fact, find a home in the eastern wing because she was the princess of the North who'd been hidden there her entire life.

"It was between Chief Arnook and a young woman addressed by him as 'Princess,'" Zhi said in dazed excitement. He stumbled out of his seat and reached for another stack of papers. "I don't have a copy of the article that you're looking for, but I do have the original pamphlet somewhere…" He began to sort through the papers. "Now where did I put it..."

 _But how can anyone stay locked up in a single building?_ Sokka wondered. People would go crazy if they were tied down to one place. Even prisoners have the chance to get fresh air and do community service every once in a while.

 _What was she doing outside anyway?_ How did she get out? Or even if she was outside, why in the world would she go back to that prison of prisons? If he'd ever been trapped to the extent that she was, he would've run away for sure.

"Aha, here we go." Zhi handed a copy of the said pamphlet to the warrior. Sokka skimmed over the heading: _Isolated Princess: Arnook's Heir Hidden Behind "Haunted" Walls._ He delved into the article, eventually stopping to closely reread a paragraph of utmost interest and a vast majority of annotations:

 _And as I picked up bits and pieces from the conversation, I was astonished to learn that this maiden, who had escaped from the clutches of the exploiters, is none other than the daughter of Chief Arnook. She is the successor to Northern rule whose birth was never made public most likely out of security reasons. I could not gather enough details to know her name, but I did heard her claim in distress that "those men" were not the attendants of a wealthy groom from a distant Earth Kingdom village but had been imposters all along, seeking to sell her in the streets of Ba Sing Se._

 _It is all the more astonishing to note that the chieftain completely disregarded her claims and furiously insisted that she had never wanted to accept the marriage to begin with. He charged that she unnecessarily escaped out of her strong desire to stay in the North. He expressed his disapproval over the fact that she was seeking the authoritative powers needed to launch her project of helping the Southern Water Tribe, the sister-civilization which has apparently been at the brink of starvation due to diminished resources and received no outreach from the North as of yet. Further in the conversation, it was revealed that the princess's marriage had been arranged_ in response to _what Arnook described as her "bursting need" to aid the South. From this we can infer that Chief Arnook, who was not fond of the princess's need to be more involved, sought to reify her isolation by looking to marry her off in secret and send her out of the country, only for his plans to fail in the hands of imposters._

 _Her Highness demanded that she be given a chance to serve the South and meet with representatives to launch the Southern Revival Project. She stated that she will abstain from food and water until the day he allows her to go on with her efforts. The following was her concluding remark transcribed to the best of my ability:_

" _You should not expect me to sit behind walls and eat lavish meals when there are starving mothers out there who cannot feed their infants. Only those who have experienced such helplessness will know the pain, and the only way I can explain my desperation to help is to make you feel that pain. From this moment onwards, do not expect me to touch any morsel or sip of water your servants bring me. The day you allow me to send help to the South will be the day I break my fast."_

Sokka set the papers aside, eyes softening unconsciously. _So she pretty much blackmailed him like that_ …?

Until abrasive Sokka barged in. _Wonder how much an anthropologist would get paid for writing a fake account._

 _No. How can you be so heartless? What if she really did…?_

"The entire tribe was absolutely shocked," Zhi said. "From reading through Zei's manuscripts, they learned not only that Arnook _had_ an heir and that the eastern wing myths were completely false...but that the princess, who'd been isolated from society for so long, who was nothing more than a stranger to every citizen, was still aware of the tensions and had broken through her barriers to get this far. We were also somewhat relieved to finally have some kind of communication from the South, but hearing of the state you were in was unfortunate. There was no way that anyone could've known...but somehow, the princess must have found the intercepted correspondences and stumbled upon your letter. She demanded that help be organized, and that very afternoon, the ministers were shocked to be called in for a meeting with the princess. _The princess of the North!_ I remember questioning myself if a person like that even exists."

The warrior swallowed thickly. "Were you at the meeting, Zhi?"

He had been, but it turned out that several restrictions have been placed by the time Zhi and his team were in attendance. The chieftain was obviously humiliated by Zei's publications, and those, too, without permission. Zei was not arrested; authorities feared this would sever relations Ba Sing Se. But he was told to leave the country at once. That, too, backfired, though, since the news had leaked to all corners of the tribe. Many protestors had stepped into palace grounds demanding that the man who told them of their princess be allowed to stay. Besides, who else had the guts to crack into more secrets kept by the government? Either way, whether or not Zei was an abiding visitor, there were restrictions placed on him just as there were restrictions placed on the princess. She was prevented from meeting with the teams last minute. She was shifted away from the Forbidden Chamber, obviously, but was ordered to maintain distance from all outside communication. She is to remain unnoticed like before, not ever to be seen or heard even by the Nationalists. _Especially_ by the Nationalists.

"But her wish was respected otherwise. Like she wanted, a meeting was arranged, and a representative was allowed to deliver her message and instructions. So bottomline, we did not meet her. We are not sure if she will be present at the Global Conference that will be taking place in the North this year. If she is to be present, she will have to refrain from speaking and should be secluded behind curtains according to purdah customs." Zhi sighed. "She is heavily restricted, but it's ultimately through her project that we are finally able to be free. We're now able to venture out of the North and travel. Not just here but to other places. How long had it been to contact a variety of other provinces apart from the same old Fire Nation capital and the upper rings of Ba Sing Se…"

Sokka did not understand why even with so much going on, they spent all meetings focusing on the problems the South, exclusively, was facing. Ivaneq never once mentioned the problems in the North. Sokka also admitted that normally he would have his suspicions, but for once, maybe just this once, he didn't feel that way. He never realized how serious it really was when Hakoda kept alluding to the unknown situations of the North. In fact, his irritation was of a different kind; the lack of communication between the two tribes in the past. The aggravation of not knowing the circumstances until he himself reached out.

"I understand that it is totally logical for people to be curious," Zhi said. "And why it's unsatisfying when they don't get their answers...but I think the main reason why no one is talking about the princess is...well, we haven't started to fully believe it ourselves. A week ago, even I didn't expect to be sitting in front of the Southern Prince and telling him all these things."

"We didn't expect to be given so much overnight, either. And I didn't expect... _we_ didn't expect...the princess to take a risk like this for us. What is the situation like? Now that the people know about her? It has to be intense." He kept skimming back over the article. "It sounds like Khasiq had been so confident of seizing the throne when the time is right. That's not possible anymore, and he'll do anything to get his place back. And Arnook must be a mess. The one chance he had at protecting his daughter is now blown out of the water. Where can he hide her when people know about her?"

Zhi, who was so caught up in his defensive stupor, eyed him with a wary look. It was true that he told the prince all about this, but he wasn't looking to bring on the vibe that the North was in desperate need...even if it was in desperate need to a certain extent. He imagined that the princess wouldn't like that.

"At some point, someone has to take responsibility," Sokka mused worriedly. "Arnook is completely removed from the responsibility of the tribe, and Khasiq will no doubt turn chiefdom into a dictatorship. He will definitely target the princess—"

"We will find a way, Prince Sokka. Don't you worry."

Which only increased his suspicions. He was not at all assured by the sudden all-positive claim.

"We have hope, we do. The entire time we didn't know of her existence, we thought our torturous way of life would continue to eat us away until we, too, started hearing raised voices. Even if Arnook didn't have an heir or was himself a useless figure, we thought that change would come from a different source. By which I mean the Revivalists, whose influence slowly began to change the face of the tribe for better."

"The Revivalists?"

"Yes. They were founded nearly a decade ago in response to the heightening crimes. Revivalist philosophy is highly mystical. Its mission is to recognize the world as the image of the Divine Beloved and eliminate all forms of oppression. Their influence has grown to the extent that many atrocities have been put down. Since the past five years, there's been an overwhelming decrease in female and infant mortality."

At least that was a start.

"At first they weren't interested in politics; they simply offered shelter and safety. Built many charity houses, arranged regular mass feedings, distributed clothing and supplies. Recently, though, they've taken major steps. They elected their president, Daughter Sayen. They also organized a committee about three years ago and have started their own school to provide free education and self defense classes, especially for women. They've also expressed their interest to take this as far as they can, even if it means crossing the line of politics. So I'm sure there will be measures taken to make sure the princess is safe as well. Who knows, maybe we'll reach a point where we won't have to worry about it. Worst comes worst, Arnook might even appoint a bodyguard for her."

"A bodyguard?"

"Yes. That's sound like a feasible plan."

After a few moments of tense silence, Zhi then helped himself to a final refill. "Are you sure you don't want some? You haven't helped yourself all this time."

The prince, still lost in his thoughts, finished reading the article and looking through the plans before he picked a cup for himself.

"That's the spirit," the crewman said as he filled his cup. Zhi was quick to wolf down the contents and slump back in his chair, but Sokka hesitated. His mind was elsewhere.

" _You should not expect me to sit behind walls and eat lavish meals when there are starving mothers out there who cannot feed their infants."_

"Don't let this put a damper on you, Prince Sokka," Zhi said. "For so long, you've been working hard and breaking your back. Tonight, you should enjoy your gifts. Don't be thinking about these issues. The Spirits will never forsake those who have justice on their side."

 _What's a complex figure of imagination or a body of water going to do to help?_ Sokka huffed and left his drink untouched as he got up. He gave back the copy of the instructions but took the pamphlet for himself and placed it in his pocket, the princess's words running through his mind.

" _From this moment onwards, do not expect me to touch any morsel or sip of water your servants bring me. The day you allow me to send help to the South will be the day I break my fast."_

"Would you like an escort back, sir?" Zhi offered, starting to slur a little bit.

"No, it's fine. Thanks for telling me everything."

They were interrupted by a distressed set of footsteps which headed in the direction of the room they were currently in.

"Zhi!" came a voice of distress, and into view came another crewman.

"Ping?" Zhi frowned. "What's going on?"

"Did you hear about…" the man trailed off, panting as he noticed that Sokka was also in the room. "Oh, Prince Sokka. I didn't realize you were here."

"Any news?" the warrior asked. "Is everything okay?"

"Uh...um…" the man paused, taking note of Zhi's wary look. "Yes, of course. You see, I was just...going to invite Zhi to join us for the feast."

"I'll be there in a few minutes," Zhi said. "Are you sure you don't need an escort, Prince Sokka? Do you know your way back?"

Clearly they were wanting to discuss whatever there was in private. Sokka took a deep breath. "Yeah, I got it."

The crew members waited for a few moments after they saw the prince round the corridor. Believing he would probably be off the ship by now, Ping asked, "What was he doing here?"

"He was wanting to know more about the princess. He's the prince of our sister tribe. And he can be trusted."

"Trust is not the issue here. We are here to help them out only, not drag them into this mess with us."

"Well what was I supposed to do? Ivaneq was the one who oh-so-brilliantly announced that we didn't even know we had a princess. And to be honest, I felt like we can really trust the prince. He's a hard worker…" He sighed and shook his head. "I stopped the conversation anyhow. Tell me, what's the matter?"

"Our lookouts just received a message from the North. The princess plans to select a few members and create a separate Council."

" _What?!"_

"Shhh." Ping handed him a scroll. "As of now, only one candidate was confirmed: Daughter Sayen."

"The president of the Revivalists?!"

"Oh for Spirits' sake, be quiet!"

Zhi fumbled to unfurl the scroll and skimmed over its contents, the flush of intoxication gradually leaving his face and turning him pale.

"It's rumored that she will be selecting more Revivalists."

"Oh, Spirits, oh dear Spirits, don't do this…" Zhi threw the scroll aside. "The Nationalists and the Revivalists are already on the edge of their seats right now! This move would would cause severe tensions with Khasiq's Nationalist Council!"

"Of course it would," Ping said in alarm. "It's official; the princess has successfully established herself as legitimate competition for Khasiq. Just imagine. A council of Nationalists and a council of Revivalists, side by side in the same room, siding with their respective supporters. The chieftain's right hand advisor and the princess regent. One move is all it takes to ensue utter chaos."

"But they're already looking to slice her head off at any given point!" Zhi yelled, earning a wide, cautious look that did nothing to calm him down whatsoever. "This would...this would be reason enough to…"

"Face it, Zhi. She was already doomed to begin with," Ping said sadly. "That's why Arnook hid her all this time."

"But...there had always been a ray of hope. I thought as long as she kept to herself...I thought the Revivalists...I thought they would…"

"Even if they tried to protect her, you know they're still second to the Nationalist influence."

"So we just have to stand and watch the North's unexpected hope go extinct?"

Ping did not answer. He simply reached into his cloak pocket and pulled out a few more papers. "Several articles have come out regarding the matter. These are just a few—Prince Sokka!"

The warrior had barged in at that point and grabbed hold of the papers, giving them stern looks. "Hope, huh? Let's see how much of that you have."

 _Power Play: The North's Revivalist Princess?_

 _Unlikely Regent, Unconventional Alliance._

 _Sayen of Today, Lady of Tomorrow: Uncovering the Lost Princess's Role Models, Bridging Secret Identities._

Sokka squinted at the last article. "If Daughter Sayen is the president of the Revivalists, then who's...?" He pointed to the title. "What lady are they talking about?"

They both swallowed nervously.

"Whether or not you choose to tell me, I'll still find out in other ways—"

"Lady of the Mist, sir," Ping spilled. "Also known as Lady. She founded the Revivalist philosophy about eight or nine years ago. She must have been around fourteen at the time."

 _That's a bit young_ , Sokka thought in borderline disbelief. Then again, he had been fourteen years, too, when he took on a major leadership role.

"She hadn't intended for a group to form," Ping said. "She's basically a mystic whose ideas which formed the foundational liberationist beliefs of the early Revival groups. Eventually she was declared as the founder and leader of the congregation. Every new moon night since then, members have assembled at allotted locations to hear her speak."

"Not much else is known about her," Zhi added. "Just like the princess, she's an incognito leader. Because she is highly targeted by the Nationalists, she conceals her image by wearing a mask. She's described to be a powerful healer and waterbender. Her bending allows her to conceal her identity through the use of mist; hence the name."

"So she's never been seen by the public, either," Sokka said. "And yet she's still willing to speak to the public."

"Yes. The Revivalist members themselves are not secret and are known to the public, but their monthly gatherings are confidential apart from the fact that they take place during new moons," Ping explained. "This is to prevent Nationalist interventions, especially considering the Nationalists' history of violence. That's why the meetings are at different locations each month, different times in the night. Somehow the members are notified in secrecy as well." He gestured back to the article. "Lady has been an influential revolutionary force in Northern society for nearly the past decade. That's why the possibility of her alliance with the princess will be heavily discussed. At the same time, both of them are targets."

Zhi had opted out of the conversation to look through the rest of the articles. He ran across a pamphlet sketch hideously titled, "The Princess Mystic at the Guillotine." It depicted a veiled woman reaching out for the ocean with open arms as the men dragged her to the site of her beheading.

"Oh, Spirits, Oh Tui and La!" the man shuddered, the sketch snatched by Sokka the next second.

"The princess's resilience is admirable, and I do believe that she isn't dumb enough to take such a bold action without having some backup plan, but it's not enough," Ping said bitterly. "Khasiq is like a prickle snake with years of experience, ready to sink its venom into the first prey it sees. So far he's taken the chieftess's life, and under the guise of friendship, he's injecting his venom into Arnook. And the princess...she's a hatchling still learning to use her wings. She better fly her way through the political arena before the snake slithers over. Such a bold move _will_ cost her her life."


	7. Yours Faithfully

**Chapter 7: Yours Faithfully**

Zhi and Ping ended up indulging in more drinks as Sokka read through every last article. The prince's abrasiveness had thawed significantly within the next hour, and he held a grave look that only increased with each paper he tossed aside, his curiosity having long developed into concern, even fear for the princess's life. By the time he decided he had enough of this for one night and craved a moment of solitude to sort everything out in his mind, another crewman charged in, scroll in hand. He paused in his tracks upon seeing Sokka, his reaction highly similar to Ping's.

"It's fine, Aput, he knows the deal," Ping said.

The crewman nodded as Sokka took the scroll. Deeming this to be the last document for the night, he skimmed the contents. "The princess selected a few more people to join her Council. She has also called for a separate advisory board to work closely with the Council."

Zhi slammed his head against the table and groaned helplessly, his hands kneading his aching head.

"I'm assuming her Council is predominantly Revivalist," Sokka said. "It says...Daughter Ting, Sister Akia, Brother Guzaq."

"Yes. Ting is the vice president. Akia and Guzaq are both well-known Revivalist activists."

"And as far as the advisory board goes...one of the selectees is Rin Quiang."

"Several years ago, he was supposedly he was fired from his position in the Nationalist party for participating in a liberationist march," Ping explained. "He was also caught in the middle of Tui worship several times despite warnings."

"Then there's politician Eiji Hang."

"He...well, he identifies as Nationalist but is actually more of a neo-Nationalist." Turned out the Neo-Nationalists were a bit more lenient and were more like their ancestors during the reign of Aklaq, most certainly not like the radicals who had taken over the party and went to the extent of assassinating Aklaq altogether. They were still rather conservative for their complementary outlook on gender relations, and they still had their tensions with the Revivalists, but they nevertheless affirm the equality of Tui and La. They strongly oppose violence against other groups and even founded a small support group for lower class women. They're also apparently the only group of Nationalists who still refer to the North as the Land of Tui.

"Eiji is not as bad as the others, but I still don't see why the princess would appoint him as a member alongside the liberals," Ping frowned. "Unless if she's trying to gather a diverse group."

It seemed like that was the case, for whenever Sokka announced the rest of the names, each commentary that followed suggested a certain pattern of tolerance among the selected individuals despite drastic differences among some. It's most likely that the chieftess is playing on those levels of tolerance within a "Nationalized" advisory board to reach some kind of negotiation. It seems the princess is also expecting a healthy interaction between her Revivalist Council and the rather conservative advisory board. Confirming this was the message towards the end of the list of members for each respective division. There was a brief summary of the princess's supposed appeal for peace talks.

 _Dated the second day of the fifth lunar month_

 _Star sign: Seagull_

 _In her written address early yesterday afternoon, Her Excellence, the Princess of the North, expressed her plans to arrange a series of conferences aimed at pacifying hostilities among stretches of Nationalist and Revivalist branches. Newly elected board of advisors as well as Her Highness's Council of Affairs are sponsoring the peace talks. Individuals of all political affiliations and levels of experience are encouraged to enroll. Special membership through the Youth Group is required for university students willing to participate in the event._

"Sitting down and exchanging kind words are not going to help," Ping said, kind of annoyed. "There have been so many attempts at organizing peace talks, all of which had failed. This one won't be any different."

"Especially considering the Revivalist Council and the complete absence of Revivalists in the more diverse advisory board," Zhi followed. "I honestly don't know what she's doing."

"Keeping her enemies close." Sokka looked up from skimming the letter. "Or maybe not enemies...I don't think she sees the Nationalists as enemies. At least, not the ones who aren't radical and actually behave like humans. If anything, this shows that she is willing to listen to different groups. If she went with a Revivalist majority flat-out, she would be labelled as anti-Nationalist, but no. She's wanting to work with all groups, even the Nationalists who aren't radical enough to dismiss her, enough to have them in court. _Her_ court, at least." He leaned back in his chair, forearm resting on his head as he contemplated the situation. "Aklaq was too involved and Arnook was not involved enough. The princess…" In resonance of his developing awe, the hoarseness lifted from his voice, letting her title flow smoothly from his lips. "The princess is trying to find a balance. She clearly expressed her support for the Revivalists by creating a Revivalist council, but at the end of the day, she went out of her way to create a separate advisory board that has zero Revivalist influence. And both of these groups will be working closely with her and have already sat down and had discussions for a series of peace conferences. It's quite...impressive…And a smart move. Her open-mindedness itself is a form of security." _Though not enough security._

"He's right," Aput said. "Maybe we shouldn't dismiss the princess's efforts. Unlike the other politicians we've seen, she actually has an idea of what she's doing.

Eventually, the three crew members reached the point of turning in for the night, all of them heavily intoxicated, but they were also wary of Sokka pursuing things further. They advised him to act as if he didn't know anything. With Southern recognition came the responsibility of having Chief Hakoda and Chieftess Kya attend the Global Conference, which would be in the North this year and would take place in two weeks. It would be best if he didn't tell them about these tensions, especially given Hakoda's vehement responses to such issues and Kya's extensive Tui-worship. The crewmen also reassured Sokka by explaining that there was never any Nationalist violence when people of other nations were there. Such acts would backfire for sure, and the liberal nations, which outnumbered the conservative interests of select cities, would be compelled to aid the Revivalists and overthrow an otherwise stable Nationalist influence. Not to mention the fact that security will be overblown in the area thanks to the attendance of all world leaders this year, so Khasiq as the self-proclaimed representative of the North wouldn't be successful in putting down the Revivalists at this time anyhow. The pinnacle of it all is the first-time attendance of the esteemed Monk Gyatso of the Southern Air Temple along with his student, twenty one year-old Avatar Aang, who had just recently completed his training in all four bending disciplines.

"It will be a meeting empowered by the largest group of first-time youth attendees," Zhi said. "Along with Princess Katara and, well, you if you choose to attend, sir...the group will consist of Avatar Aang, Princes Lu Ten and Zuko along with Princess Azula of the Fire Nation, several other young leaders of different national provinces, and nobility from prominent cities such as Toph Bei Fong of Gaoling, Lady Mai, daughter of Governor Ukano also from the Fire Nation capital, and several others. So you see, security is a must. It would be too chaotic, even overwhelming for someone like Khasiq to make any stupid mistakes."

Even so, the highly perturbed warrior came to a firm decision as he stuffed all the papers he had access to into his coat pockets.

* * *

When he reached the igloo, he hardly recognized it now that it was decorated with beautiful tapestries, cushioned by new cozy pelts, and filled with the scents of sakuras and arctic sandalwood. He followed his nose to the main hallway where he heard laughing and talking. Out to one corner was a sleeping Kohana surrounded by his many animal companions and their slobber, and adding to the boy's personal menagerie were the animal plush toys sent by the princess. The boy snuggled into all kinds of furs, wrapped in warm quilts that he shared with the husky pups and his baby lemur. Meanwhile, the rest of his family members were gathered around a small fire with Ivaneq, chatting away and making jokes. Hakoda and Kya were taking a look at several massage oils spread out along with several containers of herbal pastes. Pakku and Kanna were occupied, too, and were huddled with more scents and lotions near them. Katara was seated in another corner upon yet another collection of new pelts, sniffing a rose-scented lotion and nearly swooning onto the pelts. Everyone was immersed in the princess's gifts, listening to the older Northerner's rather vivid explanations of the kinds and combinations requested specially for them. They were all feeling truly serene for the first time in years, and dare he say, decades.

Sokka wasn't sure why he was starting to get annoyed all of a sudden. Seeing his family be this happy should make him feel content...but now he was rather irritated by the fact that...well, none of the people in the room seemed to have made plans for knowing the actual situation and were occupied with fragrances instead. And the one person who _knew_ the whole deal, mainly Ivaneq, was acting as if nothing was wrong at all. Was it just going to be oils and perfumes all day? What about the princess? Were they really not going to discuss the princess?

 _Woah woah, wait. Why am I so concerned?_ But where was the reason for him to _not_ be concerned?

"I want to go to the North, too," he eventually announced. "For the Global Conference."

Everyone acknowledged him then, greeting him with surprised looks. Hakoda and Kya shared a smile of relief. "That's great because we were actually wanting you to come," the Southern chieftess said. "You and your sister both." _But we figured that you wouldn't want to_ , she seemed to say.

Sokka ignored that look, though, and went on with, "If it's in two weeks, we need to leave first thing tomorrow, but if we're all going, who's going to watch the homeland?"

"We're not _all_ going," Kanna said. "Pakku and I will stay behind to look after the South. Since the main issues were finalized this morning, there's not much work to do in confirming everything, so we'll make sure everything gets started."

"Especially the construction of a traditional palace," Pakku said. "As the leaders and future heirs, the rest of you must go."

"So it's just the four of us then?" Sokka asked to confirm. "And Captain Ivaneq, of course."

"You're forgetting Kohana," Katara said.

Sokka frowned at the possibility of bringing his baby brother along, and before he could say anything about it, Ivaneq, who was clearly aware of the circumstances, beat him to it. "Might I suggest that the child be with you, ma'am? These conferences are highly tedious; I think it may be best if he stays here and has his fun. I imagine that children would not want to go to such a conference anyhow."

"Maybe, but it's not a good idea to leave him here," Kanna said. "Especially with so much that's going to happen. For one, we can't sit around and play games with him all day. We won't even have time for ourselves. We'll be running around here and there, telling people to do this and that. If he goes with his siblings, then Sokka and Katara can have turns babysitting. Even if Kya and Hakoda find themselves busy."

No one could really argue with that without bringing up the politics.

"Besides, Kohana has always wanted to travel," Katara said. "Sokka's been on the seas for most of his life. Kohana and I were always stuck at home. It's time we did something on a vacation level together. And we're travelling to the _North,_ our sister tribe. Kohana should more about our shared heritage."

"But the prince…" Ivaneq looked up. "What do you say, Brother Sokka?"

"Well if he's feeling so queasy, then he can take babysitting duty," Pakku suggested before Sokka had the chance to reply. There was nothing else to say, really; that's no doubt what Sokka's going to have to do. "Is the meeting going to be in the palace?"

"No, sir," Ivaneq said. "You see, the the princess had requested a change in location about two days before, but she's not a member of the World Leaders Alliance, so her request didn't go through. So instead, she arranged for high security and recommended the location be shifted to the Central Temple."

 _Obviously because of the political tensions_. But Ivaneq, who had realized from the prince's tense look that he had delved deeply into the matter, conveyed that with eye contact alone. No words were needed at that point to express that they were both on the same page. Besides, Ivaneq had suspected this to be case, for he had seen Sokka sneak away from the celebrations and head to the Northern ships. The captain also learned from other crewmen that the prince had spent many hours with Zhi and the others in the central ship with a bunch of notes and scrolls scattered around him. Why, even now he could see a copy of the popular pamphlet sticking out from the folds of Sokka's robes.

"But at any rate, this will be a great opportunity for you and Katara to be exposed to a real conference," Hakoda said to his son. "This is the right time, too. And it won't be long before you, especially, take over. As the firstborn, you are a significant attendee. Not to mention the fact that the princess invited you to come if circumstances permit."

" _Me?"_ Sokka blinked.

"Of course you," Pakku said. "You worked your butt off for this moment. You were the one who sent in the official repeals, and she was responding to them, after all. She knows more than what you give her credit for."

"She especially knows the art of proper gifting," Kanna added. "These oils, praise be to Tui and La. Most of them are herbal, too, to help with your father's injury."

"They're definitely doing their work," Hakoda agreed.

"They're also used for minor aches and pains." Pakku handed Sokka an oil container emitting the fragrance of the ocean breeze. "You said your back was hurting, didn't you?"

Sokka sighed, contemplated the use for a moment, and with a strong urge from the pulls in his lower back thanks to mountain-climbing, thief-chasing feats, ended up taking the container.

"There are other kinds, too, if you want to try them," Kanna said, rubbing some pine-scented moisturizing cream on her arms. "The princess sent us crates upon crates of oils, lotions, cosmetics, perfumes and colognes. She's very generous."

"Now now, let's not force our prince to give praise to the tyrannical Northerners," Ivaneq laughed. "We should just be glad that Brother Sokka has relaxed enough to make a trip."

"It's not like that," Sokka mumbled, soft and oddly quiet, but Ivaneq only smiled.

"It's alright, Brother. We were, after all, many decades late."

"Don't mind him," Katara said to the Northerner. "My brother's childish more often than not. Wouldn't be surprised if people get him and Kohana mixed up."

Sokka flushed in embarrassment as the rest of the room settled into more laughter, throwing in other words to joke about his occasional immaturity, but the Northerner simply took a look at the prince, a spark of amusement in his eyes. "Really? Then our princess must be mistaken. She actually preferred the terms 'child-like' and 'unblemished.'"

The drumming in Sokka's chest increased for another reason entirely, followed by the rush of blood and warmth to his face. _Unblemished? As in...perfect?_

Katara's teasing smirk dissolved into a soft grin as Kanna, Kya, and Hakoda exchanged glances of pleasant surprise. That is, until Pakku, who was stuck in his own bout of surprise, immediately tried to lighten the vibes, perhaps even killing them in the process with, "How do we know you're not making this up, Captain?"

The spark in Sokka's eyes vanished. In tune with his grandfather's pessimism, it was like he, too, was channeling his inner cynic that blocked out sudden compliments. The Northerner's smile only widened, however. "I swear upon my loyalty to the Great Moon and Ocean Spirits, sir."

Allow me to also mention the fact that I was among the select few who had gotten a chance to meet with our princess and heard this from her own mouth."

Which immediately caught Sokka's interest. "I thought she wasn't allowed to see or speak to anyone…" he trailed off, realizing that he said too much already and earned more surprised looks.

"Did you do you research on the princess or something?" Katara asked in a nearly teasing tone that only the family members would notice.

"W-What? No!" Sokka flushed. "Of course not. Not at all. I-I just... heard a few people talking earlier…"

"Sounds about right," Ivaneq cleared his throat nervously. "But moving on...she really was aware that the prince would hold onto disappointment. According to his appeal, he sounded very passionate about uplifting his home, and she was very impressed. She said she admired his persistence even in times of adversary and that she has complete trust in his leadership. She was quick to defend him, too; she said that it was perfectly natural for him to hold that grudge. And yet it's child-like." Ivaneq smoothed his hand through a sleeping Kohana's hair. "As in an innocent individual's response to broken trust, especially by his own people...And for that, Brother Sokka, the princess asks for your forgiveness."

Glaciers of all kinds, even those within hearts, melted into puddles all at once. Just for a moment, the cynical Sokka within him wondered if such...what was the word... _compassion_...if such compassion even existed. Never in his life had people spoke about him that way. Eventually, his inner cynic gave up all musings and sported a grin, having gone mute, and the hopeful part of him broke out of its cages after so long. "She shouldn't," he said softly. "She sent help as soon as she knew...at the expense of...a lot." He even went out of his way to bow, the surprise of the night reaching its peak. "I'll... _we'll_ never forget that."

For a moment, Hakoda and Kya, especially, began to get their hopes up, constantly referring back to their son's priceless expression and...downright _humility_ in this very moment. Pakku laughed. "Well, Ivaneq, your princess broke the record. She got him to bow. That's the most my grandson's ever done for anyone in terms of formal respect."

"Well I'm sure it wasn't her intention," Ivaneq laughed as he stood up and bowed back. "A huge thank you to you as well, Prince Sokka, for believing in the existence of somewhat decent people in the North."

"It's not like that, Brother Ivaneq."

"'Brother?' Oh joy, what a treat to my ears." The captain bowed to the others. "I should be turning in for the night. Thank you for letting me spend time here."

"You're always welcome, son," Pakku smiled. "You're a member of our family now."

"I'm glad."

"I'll see him out," Sokka offered, and both men stepped out of the igloo. When they were far enough from it that their voices wouldn't be heard, Sokka stepped out of his warm daze long enough to ask, "Did you really speak with her? I mean, isn't she forbidden from contact with anyone?"

"Yes, you're right, but I suppose this was one rare case...perhaps the only time it will ever happen." The captain sighed. "Apparently she had insisted that she speak with us before we left for our trip here. Her visit was sudden and not known to anyone else. It was only me, Lieutenant Jee, and a select few others."

"What did she look like?" Sokka asked, completely unabashed.

"We do not know. She was covered top to toe by white robes and face veils. We couldn't even see her eyes. Spirits only know how she could see and breathe in that prison. It's to be a separate dress code for her, apparently, and it's highly unusual considering it's not at all the custom for Northern princesses or chieftesses to stay out of public view. But as you know, she's different, and Chief Arnook wants her to be hidden in all ways possible."

"What... what all did she say?" Sokka asked. "Other than what you already mentioned…" He softened up just thinking back to his share of received compliments.

"Well, she thanked us for our support. She said she appreciates our hard work and sincerity, and she wished us safe travels. She also told us a few things to be considerate of, one being the different social dynamics that the South has in comparison to the North. How you and your family must be more involved in the community than other leaders in other places. It seemed to me that she wanted things to be the same way in the North. She sounded rather nostalgic."

Sound. Yes. "What does she sound like?"

For a moment, the captain gave him a strange look. The prince was rather too invested in this, wasn't he? "Oh, um...well, she speaks very kindly."

"Yeah...but how literally?"

" _Literally_?" The man guffawed. "Alas, if I'd known this was a matchmaking session, I would've come with more details."

"I'm only curious!" Sokka defended, earning another round of laughter in response.

"Alright, alright. Well...she speaks very pleasantly. Very quietly. People hard of hearing won't get very far with her." A chuckle. "But she will speak to you like you're a family member. Like you're the best person in the entire planet no matter who you are. I know for a fact that in all of our years of service, we've seldom met anyone who spoke to us so kindly." Hints of worry crossed over the captain's eyes. "We wish her a long, prosperous life."

Silence followed once more, this time out of unexpressed anxieties. They didn't speak as they continued walking, and once they arrived at the hut arranged for the crew members, Sokka broke the silence. "Why did she do it?"

"Do what?"

"You know what. Why would she try to help to this extent...knowing there were enemies right beside her?"

"The South was starving, was it not?"

"We would've managed somehow. I even had a trip to Ba Sing Se planned." Sokka sighed. "If you lose a piece of meat, you can find another one, but if you lose a life, you can't get it back. The tribe has people like us to do whatever it takes to find food...but who does the princess have to safeguard her life?"

Ivaneq held an equally troubled look, but seeing the prince's disturbance, he shook it off and placed his hand on Sokka's shoulder. "Don't think about it too much. I know the Spirits will be on our side."

"That's what everyone says," Sokka huffed. "What are nonexistent mystical bodies going to do to help people in real situations?"

"I'm sure some form of security will be arranged for her, now don't think too much."

"But _why_ did she do it?" Sokka pressed. He was having a really hard time wrapping his mind around how someone could go to such an extreme for strangers. Having lived all this time in a tribe that demanded resources, he didn't think twice about doing what he had to do because the tribe was his family. Being ignored by the rest of the world and raided by debtors instilled a harsh, cruel, near pitiless world in his perspective. This... _compassion_...that he kept hearing in his mother's daily prayers to Tui...he'd never had a practical demonstration of it to such a vast extent. Not by many strangers outside of the tribe, at least.

"I can find answers to any other questions you might have, but I feel like I'll never really know what made her go on with this...other than her nature to help, I suppose." The captain shrugged. "Some people do things without ever giving us answers. But I can tell you one thing. It's not your fault. You shouldn't blame your tribe for the misfortune it has faced, and you shouldn't blame yourself for asking for help. The princess wouldn't want you to. In fact, considering all that has been happening since last week, it seems to me that she's fed up with being unable to help anyone in any way. No matter how many times you reel in a fish, it's still going to fight for its life and try to slip back into the water. I like to think of her efforts in a similar way. The princess wants to breathe and swim despite knowing there are predators in the sea. She would much rather prefer that than stay locked inside and remain a naive, helpless woman born into a leadership family. She was, after all, almost sold for being that way."

It took a moment for Sokka to come down from that. For several more minutes, he sat in the snow and contemplated, accompanied by Ivaneq who kept patting him on the back to reassure him. Eventually Sokka grunted his way up, asking the Northerner one last question for the night.

"Brother Ivaneq?"

"Yes?"

"Do you at least know her name?"

The man shook his head. "No, sir."

"Do you really not know it or…?"

"I really don't know it. No one knows." He frowned, letting a flicker of bitterness shoot through. "I doubt even Arnook remembers it considering he didn't care to believe her attackers were imposters. Says a lot about him as a father...as overprotective as he had been all this time."

The comment resonated with the prince as he headed back towards home. He reached for the pamphlet and reread it for the fourth time that night.

 _...I did heard her claim in distress that "those men" ...had been imposters all along, seeking to sell her in the streets of Ba Sing Se. It is all the more astonishing to note that the chieftain completely disregarded her claims...Further in the conversation, it was revealed that the princess's marriage had been arranged_ in response to _what Arnook described as her "bursting need" to aid the South._

He wanted to crumple the paper up then and there but only ended up jamming it back in his pockets. Eventually he reached home, wearing a heavy, stricken look on his face as he seated himself on the nearest pelts he could find on the floor, lazily leaning his head against the wall. His parents and sister were bustling about and packing for the trip now that they were free from tending to guests.

"Dad packed some of your stuff," Katara told her brother. "Make sure you have everything you need. We won't be back until after two weeks."

"Yeah…"

She raised her eyebrows. "What's up?"

"Nothing."

The master waterbender shared a look with her equally concerned mother before walking over to him, looming over his tired form. "By the way, you have a nice new bed now. Just go sleep in your room."

He didn't answer, feeling his eyes burn from exhaustion and lack of sleep for over a day. Adding onto his restlessness was the princess.

 _The princess._

Kya frowned in concern. "Sokka, what's wrong? Why are you like this? You should be happy."

"Yeah. You even got the princess to praise you," Katara said. "Maybe even unnecessarily."

"Katara."

"What? That's the most any girl ever said about him." And she was most certainly not wrong.

"Stop teasing your brother." Kya tapped her son's shoulder. "Get up, sweetie. Are you sure everything's okay?"

"Yeah... I'm just bone-tired."

"You want something to eat? Last time you ate was at the feast this morning."

Food was his true love, yes, but apparently not tonight. "No, I'm good."

"Go sleep in your room, son," Pakku said. "You've been up for too long anyway."

True to what his family members insisted, his room was more comfortable with a look alone. Torn tapestries were replaced. New carpets were spread out. Headdresses were stocked neatly in his brand new cupboard in the corner. Artistic weavings were draped over distant pelts, and worn-out dreamcatchers were replaced. His warrior paints have been updated, too. The crown jewel of all was the large new cot cushioned by mattresses shipped most likely from the Earth Kingdom. Sheets in blue and purple hues taunted him to slip under the covers and accompany the white fur pillows.

He passed out onto the bed, feeling the foreign silks envelop him. They had been scented, but none of them smelled like moonflowers and spices, and he was oddly irritated by that. He didn't feel like he was home. He didn't feel like himself. The faces around him, the faces he's seen all his life, were starting to seem foreign, too. So much has changed since the advent of the North. So much has changed in a span of twenty four hours.

He pulled the tapestry of the nearest window aside to take a look at the sky. The aurora had dimmed down, and it appeared that the partial eclipse that Panuq mentioned earlier was drawing to an end. The moon began to peek out, gradually filling the voids built into its faithful tribesfolk.

 _White robes, white robes._ He tried to imagine. He couldn't. His brain hurt and didn't let him. Nevertheless, he took a long look at the sky, at the eclipsed moon finally stepping out of the sun's shadow, enabling life to flourish with her silver light...very much like the princess (or was it the other way round?)…

 _Woah, what on earth was that about?_

* * *

He was disturbed to the point of feeling sick to his stomach. The pamphlets and scrolls from earlier taunted him from the pockets of his coat that hung on the nearest rack. They fueled his bubbling annoyance, too. Annoyance combined with a kind of...dare he say anger... that the princess would not care to consider her situation...

 _Alright, Sokka, what's the big deal? Go to bed. You don't run her life, you can't do anything about it. Fate is fate._

And yet, he was anxious to hit the seas first thing in the morning, thinking about what to do. What _can_ he do? A lot? Anything? He tossed over in his bed, absentmindedly fiddling with his necklace: it was made of a strong black thread complete with a small pendant of a manwolf. The pendant had a compartment in the back for a tiny moonstone that he had lost several years ago. His mother made him wear the necklace when he'd gotten really sick as a baby, and she forced him to keep it on ever since, arguing that it was the very reason why he recovered and would save him from further perils and sicknesses in the future. He always viewed it a reminder of his mom's religiosity and kept it with him as a token of her affection.

Tonight, he was getting another vibe from it.

" _In the name of Tui and La, merciful upholders of civilization."_

He tucked the necklace back inside of his tunic and jammed a pillow over his head, hoping it would alleviate some of his headache. In the distance, he could hear the voice of Shaman Chunta, who decided to stop by to make his smug point about his authentic fortune-telling and to rub his I-told-you-so look in their faces.

Sokka did not mind. Sleep was his other true love. Not to mention the fact that he was a heavy sleeper, blocked out all boisterous external sounds with his obnoxious snores, and didn't care to wake up even if he had rolled off of his bed and landed on the floor with a broken neck...But _why_ was it that his ears had become sensitive to each time that old shaman mentioned the Northern leader? Why was it that even amid throes of exhaustion and much-needed slumber, he still perked up every time the word "princess" was tossed around in the air? He could hear every sentence that mentioned her reverberating through the igloo and sinking into his system, flowing through his body like bloodstream the moment it passed his ears. The princess who didn't have a name or face but definitely a voice and was very, truly _real_.

"There's much talk about the princess among the firebenders," came Chunta's voice. "You know of Lord Iroh of the Fire Nation, yes?"

"Yes, of course," Pakku said. "Just today I received a message from him. He has invited me to attend a meeting with a few other potential candidates from different nations. He has plans for a new organization, the Order of the White Lotus."

"Then surely you've heard of the rumors as well."

"Rumors? What rumors?"

"That Fire Lord Iroh and Fire Lady Mayu have chosen the princess of the North to be the bride for their son and heir to the throne, Prince Lu Ten."

Sokka immediately sat up in his bed. He could practically hear the disappointment in his mother's voice as she said, "Prince Lu Ten?"

"Yes. The royal family was very impressed by her initiative. Iroh, especially, thinks she will be a wonderful addition to the royal family upon initiation into Fire Nation customs. That, too, is not completely mandatory. She is given all the freedom in the world to have her own shrine for Tui and La worship in the Fire Nation palace."

"I can't believe Prince Lu Ten isn't married yet," Kanna said. "How old is he?"

"Lu Ten is around Prince Sokka's age."

"And why didn't he marry?"

"The boy's a spitting image of his father in looks and behavior. He dedicated much of his time to travelling and learning about different cultures. He also spent many years studying in Ba Sing Se. He also supposedly fell in love with a woman named Song. Daughter of a farmer in a small Earth Kingdom village. She attended Ba Sing Se university with of the Fire Nation crewman were talking about her relationship with the prince since some of them travelled with him to Ba Sing Se at the time."

"What happened?" Pakku asked. "He's not going to marry her? Unless if he was planning to keep her in his harem—"

"No, no, of course not! Harems were outlawed during Sozin's rule. Besides, Lu Ten is a sincere lad. He truly did love her, it seems, and hid his identity from her so he could court her. She did not know he was a Fire Nation prince until further into their courtship. Reportedly, he told her she would be his wife and future Fire Lady, but she was too shocked and didn't accept. Class divides are torturous in Ba Sing Se, so that must be what prevented her from proceeding, knowing he was royalty and she wasn't. She was also worried about her family's safety because who knows what will happen when someone finds out. So supposedly, she told him not to meet with her again and immediately left the city."

"Oh no."

"The prince was heartbroken," Chunta said. "Some say he's so in love with her that he will never fall out of love. He spends his recent days trying to contact her. Supposedly she moved away from her old village, so he's in the process of looking for her."

"Doesn't Iroh know about this?" Hakoda asked.

"I don't know. If he doesn't, I'll be surprised. Especially with so many crewmen talking about the prince and the prince himself taking measures to look for Song. But I would have to say he doesn't because if he did, he wouldn't refuse. He is perhaps the sweetest soul in the Fire Nation and would definitely consider his son's perspective."

"Yes. He is a rather peaceful man," Pakku said. "Even though he is the leader of the nation, he dedicates much of his time to philosophy and matters of the arts as a way to promote peace and spread global knowledge, hence his latest White Lotus project. He lets his brother, Ozai, handle most of the national duties. It's a mutual understanding for the brothers that way; Ozai is more like a sovereign while Iroh is the one who grants advice and stands as Fire Lord for namesake. Iroh has also started several charity organizations in the country. He and his wife own a monopoly of charity associations, all named after the late Lord Azulon."

"Then he will surely treat the princess like his own daughter if somehow Lu Ten finds a way to move on and the alliance goes through," Chunta said. "But many people are worried about Prince Lu Ten. It's obvious he won't accept, but at the same time, I don't know what's holding him back from telling his father about Song...if it's the case that no one knows."

"I know it's an immediate acceptance from Arnook's side," Kya said. "The Fire Nation has always been a historically significant trading partner for the North as it will be for the South."

"But there is still a concern in this matter, ma'am," Chunta said. "The princess is just recently starting a series of peace talks, I hear, in the North. Something about a few tensions, I'm not entirely sure about the specifics...but my point is, the princess of the North seems to be very invested in the issues in her homeland. I don't see her marrying someone from a different nation and living with that man away from her home. I hope she does not, actually; she will not have as much freedom to do as she likes." Chunta sighed. "It's sad, really. When a Northern crewman happened to hear the conversation and told the firebenders that the princess wouldn't abandon the North, their replies to him were just...horrible."

Sokka frowned. _What did they say?_

"They denounced princess based on the fact that she's a woman. 'What is a woman going to do? A woman needs to be in the shelter of a man at all times. Prince Lu Ten will make a fine master for your princess.' Things along those lines...which is sadly reflective of their emphasis on the patriarchs of the nation."

Sokka glowered at the ground. _Sexist leech-pigs._ And it would be no surprise if Khasiq is aiming at similar stupidity to try to gain conservative majorities.

"Even if it's nothing more than gossip and the alliance does go through, I still fear the princess's status as a tribeswoman will make people see her as inferior. Both cultures make wonderful trading partners, but racial and cultural tensions can't be easily forgotten."

True. The Water Tribe does come off as "savage" to other cultures even to this day.

"It's already being discussed that she is or is past marrying age," Chunta said. "If that's the case, then Arnook would want her married off this year."

Somehow, Sokka remained troubled. He should be blocking off such conversations, but he couldn't help being drawn to it for some reason.

Hakoda sighed. "I consider the princess like another daughter to me, and I trust that she will be a wonderful leader of the North and a great inspiration for the South as well. We are her allies, and we wish for what is best for her. The Spirits will see to it that she will find a suitable man of _her_ liking."

"She can only do that if she finds a Water Tribe man. That way she will be closer to her home and culture," Chunta said, a smile evident in his voice. "I wonder where we can find a decent tribesman who's past marrying age, who can take really good care of her...and who's equal in rank to her as a prince…so that in the future, he and the princess will be exalted as the rulers of both tribes—"

Kya and Katara squealed simultaneously followed by the excited hollers of everyone else, their shrill cries nearly splitting Sokka's ears open. He was not surprised by the suggestions and reactions knowing his family members, but unlike his previous reaction to their high hopes, this time he felt a skip in his heartbeat, which then settled to a stop and picked up like a rapid drumbeat.

"We were all thinking of the same thing!" Katara exclaimed.

"The princess was supposedly very impressed by Sokka and his efforts," Kya chimed in. "Ivaneq was telling us how she thinks of him as a great leader and...and what was it? She said something, many things, what were they…? Oh, Tui and La, I can't think straight!"

"Unblemished! Perfect! Child-like! Innocent! Inspirational!" Kanna followed. "Oh the glory! Glory be to Tui and La!"

"And Ivaneq was being sincere," Pakku added. Sokka never thought he'd see the day of his gramp-gramp jumping out of his seat in genuine excitement.

"You should've seen Sokka's face earlier when he heard all those things," Hakoda said. "He was practically _glowing_. He was _bowing_ , too, to give thanks to the princess."

" _Bowing_? Oh wow."

"I know, right? And that look on his face...yes, that's the face. I suddenly saw myself from all those years ago when I first met Kya." Most definitely, Hakoda was looking at his wife as he said so. "Sokka and the princess are both past marrying age, most likely similar if not the same in age. They're both having trouble finding matches. And they're both responsible leaders. It's a match arranged by the Spirits, I tell you! And the princess...even if she chooses to stay in the North, it's not a problem. Sokka will have to spend time there anyway when he becomes chief of the North through this marriage. They will both have to work out something, but they can take definitely arrange for it, perhaps stay here a few years and shift over there for a few years and so forth."

"I can see it now," Chunta smiled, his eyes closed in content. "Under the power couple, the prince of the South and the princess of the North, the Lands of Tui and La will become one…"

"And grandchildren. Many grandchildren," Kya beamed. "Oh Tui and La, this is everything anyone could possibly want."

"I know it's an idea we all love for sure, but...I can't help but think...Sokka hasn't seen her," Pakku pointed out. "As much as we love her and as much respect as he might have for her, what if he…?"

"Which brings me to the other reason why I'm here," Chunta said. "The whole reason I started this conversation is to bring more good news. You remember the horoscope of the anonymous Northern woman I mentioned? The one who was born during the same year as your son? The only other tribesperson born during the Year of the Wolf?"

"Yes."

"Well allow me to say that the Spirits are so in favor of this union that they have matched that horoscope to the events I've heard happening in the princess's life."

"Really?"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, absolutely. Once I think about it, it was sent to me anonymously and from the North in a fancy canister, suggesting a member of a high class. I truly believe that the princess of the North is the woman I see in your son's life. The stars never lie. Seeing her doesn't matter for your son at this point. If I'm right, I'm sure he's already intrigued."

Sokka flushed as he heard it.

"The princess is a beautiful woman on the inside, and that's what counts," Chunta said. "She is really generous and compassionate. She will treat him with love and care, and it's obvious from what she's done for the South that she has immense respect for us. That's what's most important."

The warrior was most definitely not a follower of horoscopes and didn't want to believe any of the yakshit about birth years and totems the psuedo-shaman was uttering. Everyone else may be mesmerized thanks to one of his predictions turning out famously, life-changingly true, but otherwise, nothing can always be word for word.

And yet, as much as Sokka would like to maintain that thought, he was strangely not feeling that usual instinct to dismiss the idea. The princess _was_ kind and compassionate and beautiful on the inside…

 _Hey, cut it out. You're going off on a tangent. Seriously,_ what _is wrong with you?_

But still, beneath the shift of moonlight that caressed his face, the innermost part of him admitted that he wouldn't mind having to safeguard someone who dove into such a web of risks for their sake. He didn't mind having to rely on someone of great strength like her for running the tribe in the future. He didn't mind having to bask in the fragrance of moonflower spice each night…

 _No, no, stop it. Go to sleep, damnit!_ He stood up and closed the door, having noticed that the conversation was delving into more excitement, more squeals, more possibilities.

"...and then we could have both palaces constructed in time for the wedding!"

"Oh, just imagine Kohana playing with his little nieces and nephews!"

His chest was drumming even more, but it was juxtaposed by increased worry as well. The documents and pamphlets and conversations with the crewmen wouldn't leave his mind. Truly he believed that the princess is not as naive as some people were making her seem, but there was definitely a lack of hesitance in her desire to help. Something that would both help and hurt her. Taking a deep breath, he shifted his coat on the rack to where he couldn't see the pamphlets and be tempted to delve into them again. He then took a seat by the edge of his bed, rubbing his temples until a something caught his eye from a small table on the other side of the bed: the flutter of a blue ribbon that was tied around a scroll canister, which rested on top of the long, thin package he received earlier. Sokka had forgotten about it in all honesty.

" _Her Highness made sure not to leave anyone out."_

He reached for the canister first and pulled out the scroll. It contained an invitation and all corresponding details pertaining to the Global Conference. There was also a document sealed by the World Leaders Alliance Committee, selecting him as a new official member for his display of leadership. Additionally there was another scroll: a confirmation document that requested his entry into the White Lotus along with his grandfather. It was on the grounds of Sokka's peaceful independent relations with neighboring places during the South's period of adversary…

 _Hard to believe it ended almost twenty four hours ago._

Following the collection of honors and documents came the crown jewel; his actual gift sent by the princess herself. His pulse quickened as he reached for the package, its purple wrap gleaming beneath the peeking moonlight. Sokka observed that it was neither lightweight nor incredibly heavy—something he didn't care to notice before.

 _Watch it be something super religious._ But did he really mind that at this point? Even if it was, she certainly meant well by it.

 _Defensive, aren't we?_

He wanted to take his time with the wrap but ended up tearing it out of the way. He lifted the lid of the box, finding himself shocked to see a sword. Well, it was sheathed by an intricately crafted scabbard of a royal blue hue, apparently custom-made to bear the symbol of the Water Tribe in beautifully arranged white metallic art.

"Leaping lobster-gators…" He was afraid to touch it. He had never seen anything of this scale in his entire life. Nevertheless, he swallowed his hesitation and grasped it firmly, pulling it out of the box. He grabbed the handle of the sword and unsheathed it, his eyes nearly bursting out of their sockets to see that it was _black_.

"It's black!" he said breathlessly, a wild laugh escaping his lips. "Black! This baby's black! Ha, it's _black! This_ is what Sokka's talking' about! _This_ is what I call a sword! Woo! WOOOO!"

"What's going on back there?" came Kya's voice that halted his heartbeat. "Sokka, what's all the yelling?"

"Nothing!" he called back, brushing his hand along the surface of the blade, completely enamored. Its brilliant sheen was reflected in the darkness of his pupils, building on his delighted spark especially at the inscription for _justice_ on the blade. He stood up and wielded it, letting the sword become one with his hand in a series of swift motions. Its weight melded perfectly with the weight of his arm like an extended body part.

"It doesn't seem like an average sword, though," he mumbled, drawing the blade closer and inspecting it closely. He proceeded to sniff at the blade, pausing abruptly when he picked up on a whiff of floral spice. He scrambled his way back to the box on the bed and noticed a folded piece of parchment at the bottom.

Sokka thrust the sword back into its sheath and placed it on the bed. He picked up the paper, immediately hit with that luscious moonflower and spice combination, and as he unfolded it, he instantly recognized the calligraphy.

 _To the Esteemed Prince of the North,_

 _Please allow me to express my most sincere apologies. First and foremost, I understand that a simple apology will not compensate for the hardships the South has faced, but I hope that by the time you are reading this note, circumstances have changed and took steps at restoring the harmony between our great lands. Please be assured that this is not the last of our efforts, for we are willing to work with you until the South fully recovers. It gives me great joy to see that prosperity is smiling down upon your tribe._

 _Secondly, I understand it is improper for me to be addressing this letter to you whereas tradition would favor a correspondence between our parents, the elders and the more experienced. But I do believe that as peers, we are both entitled to mutual understanding and long-lasting friendship especially in our shared efforts to serve our nation. I consider it a great honor to be associated with someone of your influence, and I must express my admiration for your hard work. What you have done for the South is remarkable and undoubtedly inspiring. The love you have for your people is worthy of praise._

 _I have heard of your extensive travels and your self-taught skills in swordsmanship, and I ask that you please accept this sword as a token of my appreciation. This sword was made by the best bladesmiths under the guidance of Master Piandao of the Fire Nation. It may interest you to know that it was made out of meteorite material, and the designs on its sheath are crafted from white gold. This blade is the only one of its kind and is the best companion for a man who himself is a unique blade among men. I hope this sword finds a place in your future legacy and aids you for years to come. I am certain that it is not the sword that will bring you glory, for it will be glorified in the presence of a capable leader as you._

 _I would like to mention quickly that extensive security has been arranged for you and your family during your stay for the Global Conference. The North welcomes you with open arms._

 _I wish you health, happiness, and success in your endeavors. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for the South. I promise you that prompt responses will be given the next time we receive your correspondence._

 _Yours faithfully,_

 _A humble servant_

The world around him became still as he sported a soft, blissful smile. He brushed his new sword to the side and laid back against the pillows, holding the letter over his chest and rereading it over and over again. There were, of course, certain dissatisfactions, such as the way she didn't mention a single one of the issues in the North and simply took on the blame of tardiness _despite_ being the one to solve the problem as immediately as she could. Wasn't the "mutual understanding" she mentioned built on asking each other for help?

And perhaps the biggest crime of all: she didn't even mention her name.

But she certainly knew how to stoke egos because _goodness_ , she was sweetness personified and easily sent tingles down his spine. He could almost see the smile she held with each word she wrote on the page.

 _Yours faithfully,_

 _A humble servant_

He dreamed that he was a round granule of spice, picking moonflowers in endless fields with an idiotic grin on his face.


	8. Northward

**Chapter 8: Northward**

The steamer arranged for the chief's family was about to depart very soon. It would coincide with the departure of a few cruisers of the other nations, all of which are also headed for the Global Conference in the North. It was estimated that they would reach their destination in one week thanks to having enough amenities for a nearly nonstop trip as well as efficient waterbenders (plenty within each ship) to speed the journey along. The rest of the international ships, however, would remain in Southern premises for the Revival Project that was to send its representatives to other Southern villages, all left under the care of Kanna and Pakku, who have become the official bosses of the South in the temporary absence of the chief and chieftess. As figures of authority, they were already caught up in organizing their new hectic schedule and speaking with the security officers prepared to accompany Hakoda and family. In the meantime, Katara and Kya were focused on getting all of their belongings into the ships (to think of how much their modest luggage tripled overnight). As all such preparations were being made and seas of tribesmen swerved onto the docks, Ivaneq and the other Northern delegates approached the Southern chief.

"We need to depart soon, Chief Hakoda."

"Yes, yes, of course." The chief looked around for his oldest son and saw that he was several feet away. The prince was stepping away from the crowd and heading in the direction opposite of the docks, wrapping a hand around his space sword at his belt. "Sokka! We need to get on board!"

"Just a minute!" Sokka hurried his way to the igloo for the umpteenth time, tossing out the excuse that he forgot something. He hoped that this time around, there won't be anyone there with nearly the entire city situated around the ships. Fortunately, not even a servant was to be seen.

 _Perfect._

He raced over to the room towards the eastern corner and spilled into the sitting area, where several mats and pelts were stacked to one side while others were spread over an ice bench. He took a moment to look around, and after double-checking to make sure he was alone, he knelt down beneath the hanging pelt cushions and reached for a box. Gran Gran's sewing box.

"Alright, Socks, let's do this."

It was the only gift idea he could think of after spending several wee hours of the morning wondering what the princess might like. It wasn't like they had anything considerably nice independent of what was brought in from the North and other places, and the only thing that the South really possessed at this point was the arts and crafts sector in its decades-long efforts to sell artwork to neighboring cities. So the young warrior had eventually decided on bracelet-making. It didn't help, however, that Kya and Kanna had already been up and about, waking up the household for the big trip before he could sneak out, sieve through Gran Gran's box, and take his time reviewing the procedures. Bracelet-making wasn't an impossible task, was it? He used to watch Aunt Nagara and other women make bracelets when he was much younger, and it didn't seem to be so complicated despite him never attempting it. He did pick up on a little bit of weaving, though, since he helped make baskets before his trading missions. Despite his fondness for crafts, the people around him generally didn't recognize his self-proclaimed expertise. Claiming his style was "unique" as they tried holding back their laughter, they ended up snickering away his creativity no matter the extent of his efforts. After his first voyage, he found that he had neither the time nor the convenience to prove them wrong and fix his dyslexic agenda.

But for once, he didn't let those things bother him. His ego, too, was accommodating such developments. She got him a really nice gift, so why not return the favor? _There's nothing wrong with being nice._ And it wasn't like he would have the chance to give the gift directly to her despite his curiosity; protocol meant that no one would be allowed to go near her, and any gifts must most likely be sent to her via servant upon servant upon guard upon security official upon trusted servant.

He broke into the box and realized to his dismay that there was nothing in it save for a few loose pieces of string. "Hey, where's the stuff?" He looked around the bench and saw nothing, but he did spot a fairly large trunk placed in the opposite corner of the room. He lifted the lid, realizing that the sewing materials made up the _entire_ trunk. How was it possible for a sewing kit to become so complicated overnight?

The princess. Of course.

It seemed that the trunk was specialized for sewing material purposes, for it held several different compartments contrary to the regular single-compartment trunk used to hold other items. The large central compartment in this trunk was reserved for craft scrolls, instruction pamphlets, and several tiny, thick booklets housing different design ideas. Apart from that were four other sections, each one lavishly divided to fit the materials under four "collections"— Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomad collections. So many varieties of beads and threads and silks, clips and clasps and hooks, needles of many different sizes, chains and pendants.

On one level, it felt off-putting that he was making her a gift from the very luxuries she had arranged for, but he still valued the thoughtfulness in making something by oneself rather than spending very few seconds at a bazaar picking something out from a crowded stall. On another level, he knew close to nothing about this woman, so where was the guarantee that she'll like what he chose to do? Which kind of beads would she favor? White would match her robes, at least, but what color would she like the most? No one must have asked her such things if they didn't even know of her. No guarantee that they'll ask her now, either, with so many rules and regulations.

"Bet they don't even ask her about her favorite food," he mumbled, distracted by thought. "What if all she got was food she didn't like and no one knew it? Could she tell people if she didn't like it? Did the servants even know about her when they brought her food all these years? Or were they just told to leave random food by some door twice a day? What if she got hungry in the middle of the night or something? What if she wanted a snack—?"

 _Stop rambling and do the job._

 _Right._ He quickly skimmed through one of the craft books and eyed the different designs. Some floral, some resembling waterfalls, some like full moons or crescents (particularly the Water Tribe collection). There were several kinds of beads made of wood (supposedly from basil trees) and tinted in saffron dyes, denoting Air Nomad influence. So many ideas for a simple bracelet. The beads were all so pretty-looking, and he hadn't been prepared for this.

 _Ugh, I don't have time for this._

So he grabbed hold of the entire trunk, deciding to take it with him and bear the pain of lugging it around. "Sorry, Gran, but this is for a good cause—"

"IN THE NAME OF LA!"

"AAH!" The warrior toppled backward over the chest, its rough edges grazing against his side. Looming over him with a wolf mask was his little brother accompanied by Isuq and Ping. Both smiled at the brothers in amusement.

"Ha, I got you!" Kohana laughed in Sokka's face.

"You guys trying to give me a heart attack?!" The prince caught his breath and scrambled up, trying to hide the trunk with his body. Isuq raised an eyebrow, earning a sheepish chuckle from the prince in response.

"I thought you said sewing was for girls," Kohana blinked innocently, trying to take a look at the box behind his brother's legs. "What are you doing with Gran-Gran's needle box—?"

"Nothing, nothing at all," Sokka insisted. "This isn't even her sewing box. It's a different one."

"A different sewing box?" Isuq teased.

" _No_ , just a different box."

"Did the princess give you a big box for stuff, too?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Well what's in it—?"

"Nothing," Sokka jumped onto the trunk defensively before his brother could get his hands on it. "Just some important things..."

"Oh, like loin cloths?"

Ping and Isuq burst out laughing, clapping the little boy on the back.

"As a matter of fact, no," Sokka huffed out his embarrassment as he saw Bato step in. "I step out for one second and the entire tribe comes following me."

"Your father's worried you've changed your mind," Bato said. "Would be good to keep an eye on you until you get on the ship."

"Why would I back out?"

"Then what on earth are you doing here when you should be on the ship?"

"Just getting his loin cloths packed, sir," Ping said and laughed with Isuq, both of them jabbed in their sides seconds later by the flushed prince. Bato shook his head in annoyance.

"I understand that underwear is important, boys, but we've got another problem." The older tribesman turned to Kohana. "They're not going to have room for your pets, Ko-bear. It's not convenient to have too many animals on board."

"No!" Kohana pouted. "I'm not going anywhere without them!"

"I thought Ivaneq had something arranged," said Ping. "I can check on it if needed, sir."

"No need for that," Bato said. "Hakoda doesn't want the boy to be spoiled."

"But I wanna take them with me! Pleaseplease _please?_ " The little boy tugged on his brother's sleeve. "Please, Sokka, do something."

"Bearcub, we really don't have the space for your menagerie. Why can't you just leave them here where it's convenient? They'll be safe here, too."

"But what if they forget me?"

"That's _ridiculous_. We'll only be away for a couple of weeks."

"But I only got them yesterday. They might forget me. And they'll be lonely. Uncle Bato and Gran-Gran and Gramp-Gramp will be too busy to play with them."

"He's right," Bato said. "Your grandparents and I have way too much on our hands. We won't be walking around the igloo cleaning husky and bison poop all day. Either one of you is going to stay behind to take care of Kohana and his zoo, or you'll find a way to take him and the animals with you."

"Who'd be too busy for their own grandkids?" Sokka frowned. While he did feel reassured that extensive security was arranged for them, it still felt uncomfortable tagging along his little brother to the North at this point in time, especially considering the politics which were ready to explode in their faces. It was never too late to leave the kid here where it was safer.

"He can stay with us until you get back," Isuq offered. "My wife can make his favorite seaweed rolls, and he and the kids can have fun. I'll be around to take him sledding."

"Sounds great," Sokka said. "Wanna stay with Uncle Isuq, kiddo?"

"But I wanna go to the North!" Kohana said, clearly adamant. "I never get to go anywhere! I _never_ get _anything_ I _want!"_

"Here we go," Isuq shook his head.

"Well decide on something quickly, boys, we don't have time." Bato handed a bag to Ping and gestured him and Isuq to follow, and the trio walked out.

"Sokka, get me some intense," Kohana said.

"What?"

"Intense. You know those long stick thingies that Mommy lights up?"

"You mean 'incense?'"

"Yeah, that. If I put some of that near Tui and La and pray really hard, they can help us."

The warrior sighed in annoyance but grabbed a few incense sticks anyway.

" _I_ wanna do it, I wanna—"

" _No_ , you'll burn yourself." He lit the incense and placed it near the shrine with as much nonchalance as he could manage. "A bunch of statues aren't gonna help solve the problem, kiddo."

"But Tui and La are inside of them! And they listen to us."

"There's nothing inside of them. It's just black and white marble, nothing else."

"But the moon and ocean are real. Wolves are real, koi fish are real."

"Yeah, but just as nature, not spirits. Everything's a science, buddy, _science_. Everything has a scientific reason to be there. No mystical elements about it."

"But everybody says—"

"Well they don't know, alright? There are no such things as Tui and La. So we shouldn't be standing around and wasting our time—"

"Then let's get going, boys." Kya was standing at the door, her arms crossed, her foot tapping impatiently. An amused Ivaneq accompanied her, carrying the remaining luggage on his back.

"Mommy, Sokka said that Tui and La were stupid and aren't real and stuff," Kohana said.

"Hey, I never said 'stupid'—"

"And he said everybody else is stupid, too, for talking to Them and asking Them things. He said that we're all losers."

"I never said—!"

"Praise be to La, the Water Tribe's voice of reason," Ivaneq smiled. "It looks like your son has too much of La within him, Mother Kya." The Northern official set a few bags on the ground and walked over to Kohana, picking the boy up into his arms. "Don't worry, little prince, your prayers are answered. We've got special compartments for your animal friends."

"So they're coming, too?!"

"Of course." He turned to Sokka. "You have nothing to worry about. We have a huge chamber reserved for the huskies as well as a few caretakers. The sky bison, however, will have to fly. Some of the monks offered to take Kohana along and teach him some things about the bison. Princess Katara will be joining them, too, I hear; she's quite ecstatic about it. Mother Kya also gave her permission."

"Yay!" Kohana beamed at his older brother. "I told you the Spirits are real, I _told_ you."

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Thanks, Ivaneq."

The Northerner carried the little prince out of the igloo, leaving a stern Kya in Sokka's presence. "At this point, I don't care what you think about our religion, Sokka, but keep in mind that the princess might be religious. Don't go around blabbering these things to her."

"Mom, I didn't really say—" he paused, and for the third time that day, he nearly fell backward after letting the words sink in. "The princess? We're meeting the princess?"

Kya blinked at his surprise. "Well...hopefully, yes…"

"B-B-But I thought...but I thought she wasn't allowed to—"

"Your father's doing everything he can to arrange for a gathering with Chief Arnook and a few of his assistants. If Arnook permits, she may be able to join us."

"So…" Sensing his curiosity betraying his nonchalance, he cleared his throat and asked with a straighter face, "So we're really meeting the princess, huh?"

Kya was tempted to flash her son a bemused smirk, but it wasn't possible with her lingering sternness and, quite frankly, her worry. Everyone in the household was excited about the prospect of having Sokka and the princess be united in matrimony, and it was nice to see that her son was visibly excited to see her despite his efforts to cover it up, but it was worth taking into account the possibility of radical difference between her son's nonbelief and the princess's apparent religiosity. "Sokka, as your parents, your father and I are used to your nonbelief. As your home, the entire South is used to your nonbelief. But the North is not like that. They are more religious than we are. You'll see for yourself; it's a rather different place. Religious sites and monuments all over the area, not just a pagoda in the center of the village like us."

"I understand that, Mom, but I—"

"You won't be forced to do any rituals if you don't want to, okay? But you definitely shouldn't make a habit of openly voicing your opinions. So either you learn to keep your mouth shut, or you opt out of joining us at the gathering, but the first option seems to be better since you're obviously interested—"

"Not _interested_ interested," he mumbled. "I'm just... curious. "

"Well whatever it is, being considerate is the least you can do, if not for the North, then at least for someone who went through a lot to give us all of this." She sighed. "I don't know all the specifics, but I keep hearing it wasn't easy for the princess to get this project launched. We should respect that."

Yet again, a part of his abrasiveness thawed with reference to the princess. He was aware that he was being more concerned with this than was probably necessary, but it couldn't be helped thanks to all the articles he read and had jammed in the pockets of his coat for further reading.

 _It's just a matter of gratitude,_ he told himself.

"Is that your grandmother's sewing trunk?"

"Huh?" He eyed the trunk and quickly threw a pelt over it. "N-No, why would I have her stuff? I got this trunk for my own stuff. I put Gran Gran's sewing trunk in her room. It was in the way. I actually ran into it earlier and kind of jammed my foot against it, so I—"

"Alright alright, let's get to the ships."

By the time they reached the ships, and everyone was on board with Kohana and Katara waving down excitedly from their sky bison, almost the entire village tried to situate itself on the docks to witness what would be the South's first successful journey to the North after so many years. Standing at the front of the crowd near the closest open bowspirit was Chunta. Sokka greeted him with crossed arms and the usual look lingering between skepticism and an odd friendship of sorts, but the shaman didn't back down from his smugness.

"You might have them under your spell, but you won't be fooling me anytime soon," Sokka told him.

"Of course not, but you must admit that I was right, Prince," he said. "You can't say I did so with no calculation at all."

"Pseudo-calculations."

"If you say so." The shaman's smile widened. "I have a feeling it will be quite a while before you and Princess Katara come back to the South, but I know you won't be returning by yourselves."

Sokka frowned. "We'll be back in a few weeks."

"Your parents and the little one will, but something about yours and Katara's birth charts is telling me you'll be staying in the North much longer. Who knows, it may even be beneficial that you stay."

 _What on earth did he mean by that?_

"I wish you the best of luck. Careful with those craft materials. They're your grandmother's prized possessions."

The prince's flushed face said it all.

* * *

A strained middle-aged Northerner stuffed his mouth with the intoxicant that he reeked of. In his drunken daze, he knocked off a few documents from his table and fell onto a pelt, some of his drink spilling onto his tunic. To compensate, he helped himself to some more, finding it increasingly difficult to curb his addiction despite the efforts he'd taken as of recent. He wasn't about to achieve anything by letting go of the drink now, anyway, so he discarded the small empty cup in his hands.

"Fuck it."

He reached for a much larger container only to accidentally knock it down as well. A disappointed groan escaped him, and his hands flew to his head in attempts to drive out the splitting ache. It wasn't until a set of footsteps approached his dark, Spirit-forsaken room. In front of his blurry vision stepped a tall, agile figure, who set a few bottles of gin in front of him.

"Thank…" The man rolling on the floor reached for the bottles and immediately cracked one open. "Thank you...Khasiq…"

The Nationalist gave a half-hearted sigh and watched the Northern chief empty the first bottle within seconds. "Take your time, my friend," he said, his deep voice laced with venom. "I don't want you passing out. Not just yet."

Arnook threw the bottle to the corner of the room and watched it splinter into pieces the same way he had turned to pieces a long time ago. He opened another container and buried his lips in it, but he slowed down this time, feeling Khasiq's slits of eyes focus on him with lingering questions. Arnook knew very well what their conversation will be about, so he took a moment to steady himself before whispering, "She's not my own."

"I know. Of course she's not." Khasiq walked closer to him and then stepped around him. "You and I are _very_ close friends, aren't we? I would know everything about you. Especially if you had an heir."

Arnook gulped as Khasiq began kicking empty bottles aside. He took a seat next to the chief and took hold of a bottle. "You know, throughout the past twenty three years, you've never done anything without telling me." He took several sips and gave a dry chuckle. "I don't know where in La's Hell you managed to smuggle in a baby. A _baby_. A baby girl at that. The question is why. _Why_ do you have her? Who on earth is this so-called 'princess?' The nonexistent 'Tui' who descended from the Spirit World?"

It was amazing how calmly Khasiq managed to ask him these things. A false calm, of course.

"Ahnah and I visited the pagoda the night before her passing," Arnook admitted. "We found the child abandoned on the steps of the Sacred Temple." Most likely because the infant was born a girl. It would've been really difficult for her parents to protect her from the chaos what formed the darkest time in Northern history: female infanticide. A horror that Khasiq himself had been a proponent of. Furthermore, a girl would not be of use and would have to be married off in the future whereas a boy would inherit the household and pass down the name of the family.

"Since we didn't have children, Ahnah wanted to raise the child. She loved her instantly." Arnook dared to look up at Khasiq, speaking sincerely. "I took responsibility for the child only because my wife wanted to raise her. It was Ahnah's last wish...I couldn't ignore it. That's all there is to it, Khasiq."

But Khasiq wasn't buying that explanation so easily. Sure, Arnook's status went from potential threat to somewhat of a harmless pet that ate every biscuit he threw at it, but even so, there could be a reason behind raising a child secretly. There could be the danger of going against the custom of lineage to restore a rightful leader to the throne. Anything seemed possible now with the Revivalists on the rise. "If you had told me she was Ahnah's last wish and nothing more than that, I wouldn't have harmed her. Why did you keep her from me, my friend?"

Because after the killing of girls declined in popularity, the torture of girls took its place, young teenage girls included. And Arnook knew the number of girls who had been killed upon Khasiq's sheets upon being kidnapped from their homes, upon being lured away from the kitchens and forcefully taken. Arnook may have been helpless in preventing such horrors, but he was certainly no fool; his adopted child, beautiful as she became upon reaching womanhood as if she was the Spirit of the Moon walking the earth, would've been no less of an object of desire for the Nationalist. Of course, Arnook would never voice these things aloud. "I was only looking out for you," he croaked. "I didn't want people to see her as the potential candidate for the throne. I didn't want people thinking she's your rival. If the Revivalists found out, they would've found someone to support."

"But why would she be my competition? You would tell the entire world that she's not really yours, wouldn't you? Peasants are not qualified for chiefdom."

Silence, and it wasn't a smart move on Arnook's part. Khasiq's eyes darkened as he asked again, " _Wouldn't_ you?"

"I...I…"

"Does she know that she's not yours at the moment?" Khasiq slightly raised his voice. "Or is she consciously breaking tradition by trying to assert herself as next in line for the throne? Damn it, Arnook, speak up!"

"She does not know." Arnook shook his head. "I...I couldn't bring myself to tell her..."

"And why is that? Do you ever intend on telling her?"

Tears threatened to slip down the chief's face. He blocked them with a fierce squint of his eyes as he chugged down the contents of another bottle. "I've never had the chance to...actually treat her as if she was my daughter…I figured I'd spare her the pain of her past, at least."

It was a miracle how Khasiq refrained from glaring at what he believed was the chief's complete, emotion-driven idiocy. "She'll have to know at some point that she was abandoned," he said. "Unless you plan on going against all customs and handing the throne over to her—"

"No, not at all. I will marry her off."

"You've tried, apparently, and you've failed," Khasiq huffed.

"There's proof that those men were criminals, Khasiq—"

"Would you rather that woman be a prostitute or a corpse?"

Rage did nothing for a man dead to all reaction. Arnook could do nothing but stare at his reflection in the broken glass pieces, more tears forming.

"If she lives, at least she can lead a life. A pathetic one, but it would still be life," Khasiq said, throwing his finished bottle to the ground, adding onto the collection of broken glass. "A peasant does not deserve a warrior or a prince, Arnook. The class of nobles shouldn't mix with the lower members of society anyway. So what's your problem? Marry her off to the first man you see and let her live her life. Your wife wanted her raised in the palace, and lo and behold, she was." Khasiq grabbed hold of the chief by his cloak, looking into the distressed man's eyes. " _But that's all._ That peasant shouldn't expect anything more or anything less. Stop yourself before you grant her anymore luxuries. Next time, you are going to force her back in that carriage no matter what happens."

"Alright. I-I need some time. Please. I need to arrange her marriage in a way that people won't notice."

Khasiq let go of the chief. "That good-for-nothing anthropologist. Thanks to him, the entire world knows."

"T-That's why we need to be more c-careful from now on," Arnook said. "Otherwise people will blame you. And...and the Global Conference. We can't possibly make a move at this time. The Avatar and all other major leaders will be attending."

"Yes...You're right…"

"I will fix something," Arnook hiccuped, "But until then, I need you to please, _please_ keep this between just the two of us. I will send her away as soon as I can. You can have the throne. You can have it all. You've always had it all." He bowed in front of the Nationalist in plea. "Please. Spare her."

Khasiq gave the man a pathetic look before sighing and kicking the man's hands away from his feet. "Alright then. Though half of our problems will be obliterated if you just tell her the fucking truth in the first place, I understand that you're a destroyed soul. I don't know if it's possible for you to go on with your life with yet another broken heart, and I understand that exposing the truth would be a constant reminder for you of your infertility. I'm sure even you wouldn't want to be known as the man who couldn't father a child." Another huff. "A chief who was impotent in all fields. How sad."

Arnook swallowed everything down, not saying a word but continuously pleading with his eyes, _Please spare her._

"And besides, she's a woman, not a threat," Khasiq said. "Why should I cower over in fear of her?"

"Yes...you have nothing to fear. You are the leader. I promise you."

Khasiq gave a nod before heading to the nearest window, staring up at the dark sky. "Let me say this, Arnook. If that peasant gets in the way of my hunt...it will end really badly."

"I will marry her off at any cost."

"Good, because I'd much rather people not call her a princess regent. She might've climbed her way up to make the laws, but she'll always be a pawn in my hand." Another sickening chuckle. "But it's still quite interesting what a peasant can do under the illusion that she will run a country as the future chieftess. So let her have her fun until she leaves. It's amusing to watch."

Fear still continued to flicker in the chief's pleading gaze.

"No matter who she chooses to be in her council or how much support she gives to the Revivalists, I still have the upper hand. But at any rate, I'm not going to waste my time on her. She's not my target." Khasiq trampled the reflecting moonlight with his boots. "My only female target is Lady. I will not sleep peacefully until the moment I slit her throat."

* * *

Sokka decided to make bangles of all colors instead of a single bracelet. One reason was that he couldn't bring himself to choose among the many different varieties what would be the most beautiful of all combinations. From the kind of color to the type of beads to the style of weaving, he couldn't make up his mind, so why not arrange for a variety of choices so she could pick the one(s) she liked? Just one problem, though; it was hard to position the wires in a perfect circular format, and he refused to give in and ask his mother for help, and after several hours of locking himself up in his cabin with the excuse of "sleep" and still failing, he decided to take a break. He hid the materials under the sheets under his pillow and slid the trunk of sewing supplies beneath his bed before stepping out of his cabin.

He realized it was nightfall as he made his way down the corridor, and by the time he entered the center of the ship, he was greeted by several upbeat attendants, who were in their own corner, sharing drinks.

"Everyone's gathered at the main deck if you'd like to join them, sir," an attendant told him. "Dinner's ready as well. I can have the servants send it up front."

So he went up to the main deck, taking note of everyone who had gathered around. And it was a _lot_ of people, too. The sparks from the nearby time candles indicated it was seven hours past midday, which meant a full eighteen hours of travel as of yet. Despite that, it seemed as if time didn't pass at all, for everyone was wrapped up in excitement and gossip. Kohana and Katara, who'd been caught up in air travel the entire day, had only recently stepped on board, and a few monks had joined them, deciding to let their bison rest for the night. Surrounding Kohana, of course, was his baby sky bison, Nuwiya, his lemur, Ku'zi, and his army of huskies.

"This is Sesi, the mommy husky, and this is Nanuq, the daddy husky," the little prince introduced his pets to the monks. "And these are their pups, Mukluq, Nukka, and Miska."

"How nice, you have the entire family with you," a monk said.

"My brother said we can only get one, but if I only get one husky, the family won't be together."

"How right you are, little one," the monk smiled. "You have a compassionate little prince, Chief Hakoda."

"Or maybe just an overambitious one," Hakoda chuckled. "I'm just surprised that my father allowed so many animals into our house."

Gentle laughter flowed through the air as Hakoda looked and saw his older son casting a small smile towards the assembled crowd. "Sokka, come join us."

Towards the middle of the circle were a few monks who bowed at the prince in greeting. Kya smiled up at him and gestured him to join them. Everyone tried scooting over so that he could fit in the small space, but Sokka simply shrugged and remained towards the back. Eventually he was greeted by Ivaneq accompanied by a servant who brought food for the two of them, and both tribesmen took their seats in the back as the others went on with their conversations.

"You've had a long nap."

"Yeah. Just tired."

"I can imagine. I heard you'd been working hard before we arrived, and right afterwards, you were running around with us to different meetings. Barely a day later, you find yourself on a ship."

"It's not too bad, actually. And I was supposed to be on a ship anyway," Sokka told him. "We were actually headed to Ba Sing Se to have an audience with the Earth King about a possible mining contract."

"Yes, your father mentioned that. You had plans to go alone, I heard. And through the Serpent's Pass, of all places. Quite adventurous, aren't you?"

"Eh, I guess. But I won't have to make the trip now thanks to the Earth Kingdom representatives and the contract agreements. In a way, it's still really hard to believe this is happening."

Ivaneq nodded and looked around at everyone else. "That's pretty much how it is for everyone, I'd say. It's so unexpected how the four nations came together this way."

They ate in silence, mostly listening to nearby conversations, laughing along to a few jokes. Hakoda would've pulled his son into the conversation, given that Sokka was one of the best storytellers around and was gifted in jokes like him, but he and Kya were obviously pleased to see that Sokka was warming up to the Northerners and, dare they add, was growing increasingly comfortable around them. So they left the two tribesmen to converse.

"Brother Ivaneq, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"I heard you guys paid off Lee and Donghai and all of our other creditors, and I'm grateful for that, but...I also know I've never told anyone about debts or anything," Sokka said. "I don't remember mentioning that in my letter to the North, either...or did I?"

"No, you didn't."

"Then how did the princess know about it?"

"She didn't really know about it," Ivaneq said. "She kind of guessed it would happen given your situation, and she told us to be alert. It just so happened that it was a big deal, after all, to the extent that Lee was threatening to seize your property, I heard."

"Yeah…" Sokka briefly pondered something before asking quietly, "Any updates?"

"On…?"

"What the princess is up to. What's the situation like? Do you know?"

"Whatever the situation is like, she took special care to arrange security for all of you. I'm sure you won't be affected."

"No, that's...that's not what I mean. I'm talking about her. What is the situation looking like for her?"

Ivaneq gave him a look. "Well, with regard to everything that's happening, I'm sure she's not looking for your help, to be honest."

"So she gets to take the risks while we sit back and enjoy what we get?" Sokka frowned. "I didn't realize that the North was in such a risky position. She...she'll be okay, right?"

The Northerner blinked, rather surprised by the prince's sudden care and sensitivity. "She'll be safe during the period of the Global Conference. That, I can tell you. With so many international officials there along with the Avatar, it will be hard for anyone to attack a figure of authority that easily without facing serious repercussions. _After_ the conferences...that's when we're going to have to tighten up security."

"But one possible option was hiring a bodyguard, right? Zhi and Ping briefly mentioned it."

"Turns out that's not going to work so easily. There was brief discussion about it at the meeting we attended before coming down South, and a few female representatives on behalf of the princess said she didn't favor arrangements like that. She doesn't want to put others at risk for her sake. But obviously, the chief would want her to have some form of security, especially if she's wanting to get really involved. Sooner or later, it will become so complicated that Chief Arnook will be looking to marry her off. He already tried it once, and at the most, he'll wait for a month, two months maximum for her to step out of the shock from that mishap with those imposters. And then he'll start looking for suitors again."

Sokka's frown deepened.

"And what I'm about to tell you is insider information," Ivaneq lowered his voice. "Not many people know this yet."

"I'll keep my mouth shut."

"I'm also telling you because you might be interested as a soon-to-be inductee of the White Lotus."

That definitely caught his attention.

"So apparently, there have been talks with officials who will soon be in charge of establishing the White Lotus, and the princess supposedly has plans to launch a sister organization: the Black Lotus."

"The Black Lotus?"

"So this is the plan. The White Lotus headquarters will be based in the Southern Water Tribe—"

"The _South_?"

"It was a plan suggested by Iroh himself, actually. Apparently there are many communal riots in the Fire Nation capital, so securing it there wouldn't be a good idea. Plus, the South has also been a historically isolated place relative to the North. The North has had trading agreements with the other nations, but the South was always on its own. This is one way to get it back in the communications sector."

Which was not a bad idea considering the attention that the South has lost over the years.

"The essence of the White Lotus will be its focus on sharing ancient knowledge from all four nations _with_ all four nations. Wisdom and the arts, especially, so this would include philosophy, truth, and beauty. There will be a great emphasis on multiculturalism and pluralistic attitudes. There is also an emphasized goal of protecting the Avatar at all costs."

"And the Black Lotus?"

"It will be based in the Northern Water Tribe. It will also have multicultural emphasis, but it will be more of a call for justice around the world. It's a liberation movement extensively backed by the Revivalists and focusing on human and animal rights as well as ecological concerns. I feel like the Air Nomads will be especially interested with that. Pretty ironic for the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation; they're the more industrial nations. But there will be significant response from them as well, especially with regard to social class issues and low qualities of living in certain areas."

"Politically, though, the establishment of the Black Lotus seems to be a major move," Sokka said.

"You're right. Especially for someone as inexperienced as the princess. This means the Revivalist Party will have support from international leaders, and that is key because with international support, the Revivalists'...sorry, the Black Lotuses...will have the agency to do what they want to do without fearing attacks from the Nationalists. Some of the people who are going to be a part of the White Lotus will be the same authorities who oversee the North's relations with more conservative countries. Because they have a common mission to support and provide and security for the Avatar, they will be united for a common cause regardless of conservative and liberal stances. If it really works out to where the Black Lotus and White Lotus have an extremely strong alliance, it basically means that the Revivalist Party will have a strong point of stability and verification. Overall, this all looks really good for the North and South since now they will be the headquarters of what will most likely be the largest international groups as of yet. And did I mention that the princess intends to open this organization up to members of other nations just like Iroh? In fact, the princess herself wrote about her plans to the Fire Lord. Without anyone knowing. That's why Iroh would like to have her marry his son, Lu Ten. It all revolves around common interests and alliances."

Again, a part of Sokka felt irked about the possibility of the princess marrying into the Fire Nation. "So I'm guessing the princess will be the Grand Lotus for the Black Lotus Society?"

"It's hard to say, but anyhow, the proposals for both the White and Black Lotus organizations will be publicized during the Global Conference. I feel that the princess should be able to introduce her plans if she was the mastermind behind it. I know it will be impossible to have Lady, the Revivalist hero, speak at the event. The only times anyone can see her are new moon nights during her speeches. And even then, no one can really see her with her black mask. She will never make such a public appearance on such a grand scale...well, unless the princess invites her to the council...which is highly unlikely because if it was possible, it would've happened by now."

"It seems to me that not even the Revivalists themselves have contact with Lady. How can she attend the Global Conference?"

"That's exactly it," Ivaneq said. "But my overall guess is that in the least, if she agrees, Lady will be the Grand Black Lotus. I say 'if' because she's technically the leader of the Revivalist Party, but she stays out of sight other than for her annual speeches. _And_ she's not the president; she doesn't seem to have a say in who to appoint, either."

"So she's crucial, but she's more like a hidden insider."

"Yes, and that's how it's always been. Lady could be _anyone_ , really. Anyone with a low profile. Someone you wouldn't think of, maybe. Or even someone who's obvious for the role but doesn't publically announce it. So if Lady doesn't want the Grand Lotus position, either the princess will take over, which won't be favored by Arnook at all since he wants her to basically be nonexistent, or she will grant the position to a senior Revivalist member or have Daughter Sayen fill in the seat. I still think it would be honorable to let the princess speak at the conference regardless of who becomes Grand Lotus, but that's looking to be unlikely. Daughter Sayen will most likely introduce the proposal for the Black Lotus, and a Fire Nation correspondent will be in charge of introducing the White Lotus proposal." A pause. "And lots of Fire Nation crewman are discussing the likely possibility of Iroh asking Arnook to join hands as in-laws at the meeting."

"If Iroh's really as good of a Fire Lord as people say he is, he won't mix up his support for the Black Lotus with his hope for having the princess as his daughter-in-law," Sokka said sternly. "The princess shouldn't have to marry Lu Ten if she doesn't want to."

Ivaneq raised his eyebrows. "Lu Ten is an eligible bachelor, many say."

"This isn't about eligibility. The princess can't possibly move away from her homeland."

"Well, yes, that's definitely true. She doesn't intend on leaving the North...But what if this plan is to ensure that Iroh is involved with the White Lotus and the Black Lotus to such an extent? What if both Lotus societies are intertwined with the alliance? That's what worries me. I don't think the princess is going to like such a deal, but if it means the Revivalist Party can have strong support...and if it means there's a chance that there's a possibility for change...for the good…I don't know if she'll still be opposed to the idea. But there are also millions of rumors about Lu Ten and his relationship with an Earth Kingdom woman, so that adds another layer to this…"

Sokka huffed, setting his emptied food tray to the side. He leaned against the ship and thought for a long moment. "Did the princess ask Lady to join her council?"

"No, not yet."

"But you would think the princess can have access since she's the regent. And she's publicly supporting the Revivalists enough to give them a platform in the Black Lotus movement. And you're saying they haven't really met…"

"Well they haven't. Not that we know of."

Sokka gave the Northerner a curious look. "How outrageous would it be if the princess was actually Lady?"

Except for the voices which drowned out their conversation, Ivaneq and Sokka grew completely silent after that. Ivaneq thought for a moment before frowning and shaking his head. "That's highly unlikely."

"How? Think about it. If the princess's past is completely unknown, and if Lady's past is completely unknown...where's the evidence to say they can't be the same person?"

"The princess was never allowed outside of the palace in her entire life until Arnook intended to send her away."

"You never know. What if there were certain moments…? Moments when she escaped to explore the world and came back just in time. Played it cool…"

"Still sounds like a bit of a stretch. And I'm sure she wasn't ignored by her own father to the extent of spending entire days and nights _completely_ by herself."

"You'd think that if Arnook really cared that much, he would spend enough time with her that he would be willing to see her side of the argument for whatever it may be. I know I wouldn't want a father who ignores my side of the argument. Especially if someone was trying to sell me away to some remote village near Ba Sing Se."

"Well I'm sure she was still highly guarded—"

"By highly religious guards who had no idea that she existed? You think they wouldn't be curious if they were told to guard a random door in the eastern portion of the palace? Especially with rumors about spirits haunting the place?" Sokka certainly was adamant about this. "I don't think there were any guards," he said softly. "I don't think there was...really anyone at all. She must have been very alone."

Yet again, Ivaneq showcased his amusement as Sokka tried to shake away his visible concern. "And, uh...considering everything she's doing...if anything, it's clear she wants to be really involved. Someone like her must definitely not have been okay with staying locked up in a room for twenty four hours. Not a psychologically beneficial move."

"So you're saying she sneaks out every new moon night and gives speeches as Lady? You're saying a nonbender who was confined to a building all of her life suddenly gains bending powers every time she wanders about as Lady? You're saying that someone who had _no_ access to waterbending training whatsoever somehow perfected the art to the extent of being a world-class healer? The stories you hear about Lady's healing will convince you for sure that that woman is not like anyone has ever seen. And if the princess really was a bender, why would she hide her bending abilities? Wouldn't her bending in public be a way of her saying she doesn't need to be protected like a fragile doll because she can defend herself?" Ivaneq was certainly satisfied with the lack of immediate response. "So in conclusion, your theory is still quite a stretch."

Sokka, though, was still quite determined. "Say what you want. Maybe we don't have all the details yet, but I still don't think it's impossible."


	9. Finding Moonlight

**Chapter 9: Finding Mo** **onlight**

The crescent moon was high in the sky, showering its light through a particular window of the ship and bouncing into the snoring warrior's room. He was sleeping at the very edge of his bed, his legs handing clumsily off of either end of the bed with his face pressing into the princess's letter. He wrapped a protective arm around his space sword and curled his other arm around a pillow under which the fruits of his two-week labor lay hidden. His fingers, unaccustomed to work with tiny beads and delicate artifacts, tingled and quivered as a result of their hard work, but it was all worth it as suggested by the proud, gushy smile on his lips. His contentment didn't last for long, though, thanks to the harsh rapping and clanging at his door.

"Prince Sokka?" the door rattled. "Sir?"

His body quaked awake. "Yeah— _aah_!" And he ended up bumping into the bedside table, hitting his head and scraping his bare back on his way down. "Aaarghhah!" He tried to pick himself up and flailed to get a grip on something only to jam his toe on the edge of Gran-Gran's sewing trunk. " _Yeeaooow_!"

"Sir, are you alright?!" the rapping grew louder. "Sir!"

"Yes, yes, I'm— _gaaah_!" A tumultuous wave to hit the ship just as he sought balance with one leg and held up his injured one, and in an instant, he was tossed back down right on his throbbing toe. The trunk toppled over from his weight.

"Aw, come on!"

The beads in the trunk all came tumbling forth, and every inch of his room was filled with the clattering of thousands upon thousands of craft materials. Sokka rubbed his head and moaned in pain. "Blubbering blowholes, what is it, Lieutenant?"

"We've, um... arrived at Northern premises, sir. We're about to reach land soon."

"Wonderful."

"Are you alright, sir?"

"Yes, fine." He lay still on the floor in the midst of countless beads, rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and glanced up at the moon. Its light remained gentle, lighting up his La necklace and the beads around him in its glimmering whiteness, making them look like pearls bobbing up to the surface of the ocean. When he felt the ship cease its heavy swaying, he carefully stood up and looked out of his window at the surroundings. There was nothing but water and a few glaciers here and there which marked Arctic territory, but there was no real _land_ yet. His scrutinizing look turned into a soft beam as the princess's letter flew towards him, and he caught it carefully in his hands, quickly wiping away a spot of drool on the paper. All he needed to do was read the greeting.

 _To the Esteemed Prince of the North..._

"Right! _Esteemed!_ Esteemed Sokka of the Water Tribe, surely you can handle a bit of karma— _oh_ smoking sealfish, the beads." He tucked the letter carefully in the pocket of his pants and hastily picked up all the supplies. He shoved them into Gran Gran's trunk, not caring to organize them into their respective nation palettes (that would be a task for later). Along the way, he ran across a white velvet ribbon, which he decided to use to string together the bangles he crafted over the past two weeks. After a lazy attempt at cleaning up, he turned over the pillow on his bed and eyed his creations: eight bangle bracelets— all bearing adjustable clasps for the wearer's convenience— coated in deep blue at their thick rims. Their middle was covered in seaweed glue and filled with crushed crystals of different colors bleeding together in harmony, which would make it convenient for her to wear them over attire of any and every color. Dangling from four different places on each bangle were little silver bells. They were originally round in shape, but Sokka had tinkered with them with the help of his boomerang and shaped them to resemble sloppy but obvious crescent moons. The crescent bells rattled and jingled with every move the bangle made.

No doubt that these were easily the fanciest out of all of his creations so far.

In the light of the time candles, which sparked thrice to indicate three hours past midnight, his shaky fingers worked to loop the velvet ribbon through the bangles and tied them together not just into a bow, not just a knot, but his famed _special knot_ resembling a butterfly. And he marvelled at his creation and pat himself on the back.

"Excellence at its finest," he grinned. "Alright, Sokka, let's do this." He placed the bangles in a gift box that he'd designed at the start of their journey and sieved through another trunk, picking out a towel and a shaving blade. He briefly eyed himself in the mirror, puffed up his chest, and flexed his biceps.

"You, yes _you right there_ ," he pointed to his reflection, "You are…" he paused and fumbled with the letter in his pocket, re-reading its eloquent contents. "Ah, yes! You, sir, are a _unique blade among men!_ Hah!"

* * *

When the announcement of their arrival in what was _officially_ the Capital City's waters boomed through the speaker, he ended up nicking himself and almost shaving off a significant portion of his goatee in anticipation. He groaned and splashed his face with water before throwing on a silk black tunic, his best embroidered overcoat, and an extravagant navy outer robe with blue-green sequins, resembling an aurora bouncing upon the night sea. He also sported a pin of Southern royalty and authority— a pin that his sister and parents were most likely sporting as well. After three failed attempts and a successful fourth in tying his wolf tail, he tucked the princess's gift box carefully in his bag and cushioned it with soft mufflers and headdresses, and he nearly flew out of his room to the main deck. His parents were already there, donning fancy robes and Southern pins; they conversed with Ivaneq and a few crew members as Kohana dozed off against Chief Hakoda's shoulder. Katara was looking out at the view in her exquisite purple royalty robes, hoping to spot something other than water and tiny glaciers here and there.

"Ah, Brother Sokka!" Ivaneq smiled and bowed in greeting. "It won't be long, now. As soon as we reach land, you will be escorted straight to your quarters, and you can finally catch up on your sleep."

Sokka frowned. _Straight to their quarters? But what about the princess?_

 _You know she's not allowed to step out._

 _But she met with Ivaneq and the crew before they left. Besides, we're the most important people to ever visit! She has to come see us, right?_

"Are we not meeting with any important officials?" Hakoda asked the Northerner, interrupting Sokka's train of thought.

"Oh, of course we will, but I assure you it will only be in brief. It's only three hours past midnight, and you haven't all slept well these few weeks on board. Once you are well-rested, we can go on with official meetings and trade talks."

"But the Global Conferences will be starting this week."

"We are one week ahead of schedule, sir. I assure you it won't be a problem if we gathered tomorrow evening."

"So we don't get to see the princess until then?"

Ivaneq sighed. "I can only hope we do. I know you're wanting to meet with Chief Arnook and his assistants, and I sent in a request for him to let the princess attend as well, but I have not received a reply from him yet. It seems to me that he is against the idea."

Sokka was visibly disheartened by the news despite a part of him telling him not to be too surprised.

"I'm sure the princess wants to meet with all of you as well," Ivaneq said. "But I can only imagine that the rules must have gotten stricter for her. Chief Arnook has kept her hidden for so long. Even with everyone knowing about her, I doubt he will let her step out of the safety of the palace."

 _Some safety_ , the Southern prince shared a knowing look with the Northerner.

"Are the circumstances really that dangerous, brother?" Hakoda asked. "You never mentioned any full-blown conflicts in detail."

"Oh, uh... just the expected tensions between political groups, sir. We will talk more on this once you've settled in."

"Please, Ivaneq, we need to see the princess at some point," Kya said, a hopeful look in her eyes shared by a certain someone else. "It will be very unsettling for us if we don't have a chance to give our thanks personally. She has done so much for us."

"I will do what I can, Mother Kya."

Katara was not oblivious to the rather irritable look on her brother's face and approached him with a smug look. "You must be quite disappointed there," she nudged him. "You were looking forward to meeting the princess right away, weren't you?"

"What? No, o-of _course_ not!" he puffed his chest up.

"Oh? Then I must be hallucinating that my big brother is now all of a sudden wearing…" she sniffed the air around him. "...ooh, _cologne._ Ocean foam, isn't it? And this robe and these silks..." she ran her hand over the sequins. "All set for some courtship, aren't ya? You arctic peacock you..."

"Alright, enough!" he flushed.

"Seriously, you think she'd miss out on her sleep and come inflate your ego at three o'candle?"

He let out a series of incoherent protests before strutting away, his robes billowing like the plumage of said peacock. He nearly tripped over them as another rough wave hit, and in the distance, they could all see the emergence of an extremely tall, wide, thick icy wall bearing the Water Tribe insignia at its center.

"We're here," Ivaneq announced. "The Northern Water Tribe."

The Southern visitors along with several monks and Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom representatives who made their way up to the main deck gawked at the glacial surroundings. Colorful lights began to burst through the dark sky, showering their deep ceruleans, cosmic purples and life-giving greens upon a giant wall that greeted the visitors. Faint silhouettes of tribesmen on gondolas waited for them near the wall, and as the tribesmen spotted the visiting ships' white full-moon and black moon-and-ocean flags along with the insignias of the other nations which followed, they partitioned the wall with their bending and maneuvered it to form an opening. Numerous sky bison began to descend at the sight of the wall and plunged into the water, ready to swim their way inside.

It took nearly twenty minutes to get through the walled system and its mechanisms. Smaller walls within the border, which held more tribesmen at the top, had also awaited them, and they came down with waterbending. The tribesmen in boats bowed as the ships got closer, and they held out their arms, ushering the ships through the lavish entrances of the outer walls. The inner wall, which was just as tall as the first but _much_ thicker, greeted them next. Several tribesmen in gondolas awaited them there, too, and bent a tunnel for them to pass through.

"Now that we made it through the inner wall, we just need to sail for another three miles," Ivaneq said. "That's when we'll reach the actual capital."

Sokka glued his eyes to the distance before him, faintly spotting the entrance of the city. There were walls there as well, though smaller in size. Strips of the walls were melted to form waterfalls, which raised the water levels, and several tendrils bent by the tribesmen opened a system of icy locks which originally kept the looming ice gates in place. The gates to the grand city were soon opened, allowing the ships to pass through.

"Praise be to the Glacier Spirits," Kya murmured. "This certainly is a complex system."

"Maybe even more complex than what they have in Ba Sing Se," Hakoda added.

Sokka couldn't argue with that.

By the time they entered the gates of the inner wall, they were _still_ sailing in a vast body of water, but in the near distance, they could see the dockyard. Several glacial docks protruded from a large, circular platform of ice, which bore a colossal monument: a ferocious arctic wolf, the animal persona of La, sculpted out of obsidian rock, and next to him was a white moonstone figure of Tui in the form of a beautiful young woman in long, modest robes, her hair loose and flowing down to her ankles. She rested one hand on top of the wolf's head and held a torch above her head with the other, and within the artificial torch was space to light _real_ fire, kept ferociously active but contained. The two sculptures expressed their connectivity from the water that rippled from beneath them and merged into the ocean. They also mirrored each other with the reciprocal spots on their foreheads. Between the woman's eyebrows rested a dark circle crafted out of obsidian and resembling La, and the wolf bore a moonstone circle on his forehead, referring to Tui. As the moonlight cast its light over the monument, it glimmered against the darkness of the night, reflecting the moonlight with greater brilliance and lighting up the surroundings. Once Sokka was able to step back into reality from his awe, he realized that not only was this monument a cultural symbol but it also served as a kind of lighthouse.

"Oh, They're so _beautiful_ ," the Southern chieftess sighed in content and folded her hands together in prayer, her eyes tearing up with joy. "Hakoda, dear, we need to have something to honor the Spirits in the South, too. It will bring us good luck."

"Yes," Hakoda said, breathless. "Yes...of course..."

Ivaneq and the other tribesmen bowed their heads before the monument, and Hakoda, Kya, and Katara followed, waking up Kohana in the process so that he could join in the prayer. The Southern chieftess made her way up to the edge of the ship and addressed the moon and ocean.

"Dearest Mother, Beacon Light of the Water Tribe, if it wasn't for Your compassion, our tribe would have remained in starvation. Dearest Father, Protector of the Innocent, if not for Your mercy, we would have perished long ago. We surrender ourselves to You, Great Spirits. Guide and nourish us always."

Everyone began to drop to their knees on the ship, facing the monument.

"Bow, Sokka," Hakoda whispered. "I don't normally ask you to do this, but…" he trailed off, highly surprised to see that his son was already down on his knees. Sokka lowered his upper body but kept his eyes on the monument, particularly on the face of the moon which glimmered beneath the silver moonlight and the harmony of the aurora.

" _Does Her Highness have a name?"_

 _"We don't know it."_

 _"Well it won't hurt to call her Tui for now."_

* * *

Once the ships were docked, everyone crowded near the exit, and once the bowsprit lowered, they were all greeted by earth-shattering cheers. The representatives from all four nations and the Southerners in particular were welcomed with honor and grandeur. Nothing ostentatious or too classy but warm and elated. Sokka was surprised at the number of armed men who quickly huddled near the bowsprit as soon as he and the others stepped onto Northern soil for the first time; the princess was most definitely not lying when she wrote about arranging extensive security for them. And boy, were the security guards dedicated. They didn't leave the Southern family unattended for a single moment. Needless to say that Sokka's earlier nervousness regarding safety measures was quickly quelled, but his interest was piqued as he noticed a sickly-looking middle-aged man in fancy robes waiting for them. He was surrounded by several more bodyguards.

"It has been so long since we've had Southern brothers and sisters set foot on the Land of Tui," the man said, a tired smile on his face. He bowed. "I am Arnook. Pleased to meet you."

"Chief Arnook!" Hakoda tried to bow, but Arnook stopped him, recognizing the Southern chief's plight with crutches. "It's truly an honor to meet you, Chief."

"The honor is all mine, Chief Hakoda." Arnook reached into the pocket of his robes and took out a container of black pigment. He marked the Southern visitors' foreheads with marks of welcome as per Water Tribe tradition. Sokka was the last to receive a mark; he received the mark of the ocean: a small squiggly line that ran horizontally on his forehead. Arnook paused to look at the Southern prince, who half-bowed in greeting. Sokka wanted to be angry with the man who nearly sent his own daughter away with criminals and didn't care to listen to her side of the story, but Arnook genuinely did not look well. Behind his smile was pain, a kind of pain that seemed to be the very reason behind his illness...though Sokka was also no stranger to the fact that Arnook was a heavy drinker.

"You must be Prince Sokka," the man greeted. "My daughter was moved by your call for help. I hope your demands have been met, Mr. Chief-to-Be."

Sokka managed a half-hearted smile. "I'm thankful, Chief. We will never forget Her Highness's support...yours, too, of course."

"Your son will make a wonderful chief, Brother Hakoda," Arnook's chuckle was interrupted by a brief coughing fit. "My sincere apologies. I wish I could stay longer, but my health has upset me as of recent."

"We're extremely sorry you're not well," Hakoda said worriedly. "Please, stay indoors and get plenty of rest."

"Thank you, Brother. We will all meet again tomorrow, my friends."

"Chief, it would be an honor if we get to have a chance to meet with your daughter as well," Kya said. "She is the reason why we were able to make it this far."

"Spirits-willing, ma'am," Arnook said, but it was still obvious that he was hesitant. The Northern chief brushed a hand over a sleeping Kohana's hair and smiled off the awkwardness before bowing to the Southern royals and making his way back.

"Such a kind man," Hakoda said. "He was willing to welcome us even when he's feeling ill."

"But notice he's still not comfortable with letting the princess meet with us," Kya noted.

"There must be a strong reason behind it," the Southern chief said. "We shouldn't pressure him."

It was hard for Sokka to be too sympathetic, though; his abrasive side was starting to kick back in. He had to curb his sternness, though, as a few officials in elaborate robes approach him and his family.

"Welcome to the Northern Water Tribe, friends," the tallest one in the group said. "I'm Eiji Hang, senior member of the princess's advisory board."

 _The Neo-Nationalist_ , Sokka noted from his study of the news pamphlets. He shared a look with Zhi, who nodded to confirm the Southern prince's recognition.

"Are we going to meet any of the extremist Nationalists?" Sokka whispered.

"No, sir, I don't believe so," Zhi said. "They kind of don't like the fact that you're all visiting. It only means they'd have to lay low in their activities."

"I figured."

The woman in the group of officials then stepped forward. "My name is Ting Yun," she bowed before hugging Kya and Katara in greeting. "I'm a chief member of the princess's Council and vice chairman of the Revivalist Association."

 _Must be the famous Daughter Ting,_ Sokka identified.

"I'm Rin Quiang, Your Excellencies," said the next official. "I'm also a member of the advisory board."

"Former Nationalist, current Revivalist, avid devotee of Tui, yes? " Sokka asked to which he received a proud grin and nod from the politician in response. Hakoda and Kya gave their son a look. Since when did he become invested in Northern politics enough to research, let alone _remember_ the members' backgrounds?

"It is an honor to have you all here," Eiji smiled. "The princess wanted us to wish you a warm welcome. Please, join us for a gondola ride. We will take you through the city's interior."

Katara expressed considerable enthusiasm for the gondola ride, so before long, they were off with waterbending security guards opting to be the gondoliers. Beyond the monument platform, the visitors beheld a vast system of canals and waterways, icy streets and walkways, tenement balconies and water pipes embedded in ice fountains. Numerous gondolas were docked up separately along the canals; Sokka guessed that the large quantity must mean that these gondolas were a form of public transportation. They had to be in order to support a city that was built entirely on water _with_ water.

"This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen," Katara breathed, looking around in a bout of ecstasy. "This is...I can't even begin to explain…"

"There's not as much land as the South," Kya said, her eyes lighting up at the waterworks. "The city is run _entirely_ on waterbending."

"The outskirts of Capital City are actual land masses, the Nunjaraq and Harekhaq mountain ranges, and frozen tundras, but the city itself is designed to rely completely on water and bent ice," Zhi explained.

"But that's a great advantage here because you have a lot more benders," Katara said. "As a bender myself, I can imagine how convenient it is to run any operation relying on water."

They cruised their way through the canals and passed through the outer sector, and royal treatment increased as they went. Sokka never got to fully experience what is meant to have "prince" as a part of his title. Heck, no one in his family looked like they were royalty. He did not care for the luxuries deep down, but just this once, he allowed himself to sink into the North's measures of utmost respect...even if he did consider it weird to a degree.

His parents and sister, though, were ecstatic, and as they all transitioned into the heart of the city, they became even more mesmerized and repeatedly noted how the city was not at all like the South. Other international representatives, even many of the ones who'd initially been adamant about turning in for the night, ended up exploring the city as well. The Air Nomads, in the meantime, found contentment on the backs of their sky bison, which swam through the canals.

"It would have been wonderful if Lady Kanna and Grand Master Pakku came along as well," Rin said.

"They were really enthusiastic about coming, but we needed to have people to oversee the revival project," Hakoda said.

"Ah, yes, of course."

"But I can't tell you how excited we are to be here. It brings us great joy to be reunited with our Northern family," the Southern chief smiled. "You see, my father was originally from the North. Born and raised in the village of Patnaqiq. Just a few miles east of the capital, he said."

"Patnaqiq, eh? That's my hometown as well!" Eiji grinned. "Which division was your father in?"

"The eastern division."

"We were on the west side of the river. Near the Chungali area."

"Oh really!"

"We should visit the village at some point. Just let me know when you're free, and I will be happy to escort you there personally. Security will be with us at all times, rest assured."

While everyone was caught up in the fascination of sightseeing, conversing, and forming new friendships, Sokka remained quiet for the most part, holding a Kohana in his arms as the boy slowly sank back into sleep. The warrior was definitely won over by the city, but his focus was elsewhere, having shifted from the pained Northern chief to the princess who was yet to be seen.

"You don't look like you're the quiet type, Prince Sokka."

The prince sported a grin as Rin took a seat beside him. "Just taking in the view of the city. It's a great place you got here."

"I bet the South is very beautiful, too. The Land of La has been blessed with extensive game and a great mass of land. Must be convenient to get to places simply by walking instead of riding a gondola every five minutes."

"Must be convenient to ride around on a gondola instead of walking for miles several hours...though I suppose it's worth it for maintaining six packs and sixteen packs."

The man chuckled uncomfortably. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be laughing when it's actually a serious issue. We heard a lot about how your tribesmen walked for hours on end to catch a few fish."

"No big deal to laugh about it," Sokka shrugged. "Yeah, it happened, but we needed something to help us get through the situation. Finding the humor in it can help sometimes."

With the turn of every canal and the looming silhouette of every building, the officials told them all they needed to know. Supposedly, the North's tourist industry profited very much from its world-class aquariums, water parks, glacial caves, ice hotels, the bluest of lagoons, and the most exotic freshwater cenotes and oases, which serve as homes to millions of species of Arctic flora. As far as the entertainment industry went, the North was prestigious for its Water Tribe folktale-inspired plays, dramas, puppet shows, tribal ballads, and displays of spiritual art, music, and dance. The Blue Moon Festival, Full Moon Celebration, and the New Moon Celebration, all observed with great reverence across both tribes, were chief among the North's abundant displays of festivity.

"I heard you have a passion for waterbending combat, Sister Katara." Daughter Ting pointed to a few isolated lots as they passed by areas of open space. "Those training grounds over there are exclusively for waterbending lessons for women."

"Pardon my ignorance, but I thought the North didn't allow women to learn waterbending for the sake of combat."

"That has changed drastically in the past two decades. Twenty five years ago, no woman could walk down the walkways without facing some form of threat, but the Revivalists and Neo-Nationalists have brought much attention to issues of domestic abuse and violence against women. There's been improvement, of course, but there still wasn't a formal, written recognition of these issues by the government. "

Sokka frowned, reminded of Zhi's commentary and the drastic situations that the North had been in previously. The women who had been abused, the infant girls who were brutally killed, the infanticides that took place. And he knew that what Ting was describing alluded to all of that albeit in a glossed-over version.

"That's why two weeks ago, Her Highness revised the Bill of Defense," Eiji said. "She stated that she was willing to provide funding for self-defense and combat lessons for women. She's also welcoming women into the National Defense Department, meaning women could now join the military if they desired. Originally these training grounds were meant for men, but after the bill, they've cleared out and are set to reopen next week to welcome women from all over. The trainers will be women, too, specifically members of the Revivalist Party who have previously learned combat."

"Some training grounds are nonprofit and offer free or low-cost self-defense lessons for the underprivileged," Ting said. "The profit-based grounds are mainly for aristocratic and upper middle-class women, and the money collected here goes to the maintenance of training centers."

"That's amazing!" Katara exclaimed.

And the others couldn't agree more. Sokka, thinking of the women in his family and his sisters and aunts and mothers around the world, soaked in the information and felt relief trailing through him. He shifted Kohana around in his lap and hid his look of awe in his little brother's wild hair. "It, uh...it would've been nice if your leader came to see us," he went back to his conversation with Rin.

"I'm sure she really wanted to come see you all as well, but it's not easy for her to step out, you see," he said. "That's why she sent us on her behalf to see to your lodging arrangements and make sure you're all settled in."

Sokka looked both ways next to him. Everyone was caught up in different conversations. So he leaned forward and asked quietly, "You wouldn't happen to know how her name, do you?"

"No, sir, I do not."

"Do any of them know…?"

"It's highly unlikely."

"Then what do you call her?"

"Princess."

"Just 'Princess?'"

"Yes."

"And you have no idea what she looks like, either, do you?"

Rin shook his head. "I understand it's a very unusual situation, and it's not exactly something we should be proud of. Not knowing our own leader and all. Circumstances are like that."

Sokka took a deep breath before admitting, "I know the situation here. The surface of it, at least. And I understand how risky it must be for her to come this far, how risky it still is." He looked up at the startled politician. "If the princess needs a bodyguard, I'd be more than willing to do the job."

Rin kept blinking, eyes wide with surprise, his mouth struggling to form words.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Because…" he trailed off, lowering his voice and looking around before whispering, "Because you weren't supposed to know all of this."

"Why not?"

"The princess stressed how important it was that you all attend the conference and leave as safely as possible," Rin said. "If you get involved in this mess, it would present a danger for your family and even the South, might I say."

"What's Khasiq gonna do, huh?" Sokka glared. "If he calls himself a man, he'll come at me instead of my people."

"Please, sir. If you really respect the princess, do as she says and stay calm. She will handle this."

"How is it that she gets to help us and we just get to sit there and take what she gives?"

"If this is about returning the favor, then I highly suggest you don't look into this," Rin said. "The sole reason why the princess refused to accept a bodyguard all this time is so that they won't get hurt while protecting her. She's a pacifist, you see. Refuses to step on even a spider-beetle. Tell me, who _doesn't_ step on a spider-beetle? Those things are creepy as shit."

"Only an airbender."

"Exactly. She's practically an airbender stuck in the body of a tribeswoman. You think she would agree to you, the _prince_ , halting your plans in the South to pursue a career as her bodyguard? The last thing she would want is for someone of high authority like you to get hurt because of her."

Sokka frowned at his reflection in the water.

"This isn't meant to make anyone feel like they won't be able to defend themselves or anything. It's just...thousands of families are relying on you, sir. You're set to be the next chief." He shook his head. "Forget it, sir. She does not expect anything from you. Let her be. We can only pray to the Spirits, have our elders bless her to live long. That's all we can do."

"Like any of those would actually help." His glare softened, but his persistent hand still splashed the water in the canal, shattering his reflection. "Pacifist, huh?"

"Yes. She's not a fan of violence whatsoever. So much that she doesn't even touch meat. And with every policy she makes, she weighs the possible outcomes of violence from her decision. She cannot even speak harshly."

Sokka sighed and looked up at the sky, at the moon standing up high, dignified as it bathed the world in its light. Rin followed his gaze and smiled wistfully at the crescent queen of the night. "The princess reminds me a lot of the moon. The moon only gives, whether it's light, strength and energy for us tribesfolk, life for the nighttime flora and the creatures in the sea with its control of the tides. It never takes or demands, you know?"

Kohana shifted in his big brother's arms and rubbed his eyes. He sleepily crawled over to his mother on the other end of the gondola. "Are we going to see the princess, Mom?"

The others chuckled in amusement and raved on about how cute the little prince was, but they could give no answer to his question. Sokka took a look at his family, how happy they were at the moment, how secure they were, how they no longer worried about finding food for the next meal. All of this for the potential cost of an innocent person's life? He wasn't having it. He turned his attention back to the moon, the object of his fascination and fondness throughout the course of his life. He remembered how the night before their lives changed, he'd looked up at this very moon and allowed himself to hope, to _ask_ for help despite firmly believing in the uselessness of spirituality and religion. And thought it had to be a coincidence and absolutely _nothing more than that_ , he nevertheless felt surprised by how _timely_ the response had been, how their very next meal the next day turned out to be a lavish feast that promised many more of its kind.

How it was all made possible by the princess of the North.

" _You should not expect me to sit behind walls and eat lavish meals when there are starving mothers out there who cannot feed their infants."_

 _"The day you allow me to send help to the South will be the day I break my fast."_

"It really would've been nice if she was here," the prince said again.

Ivaneq, who was no longer a stranger to the prince's occasional bouts of...worry, maybe even longing…settled next to him and pat him on the back. "Well you know what?" he exchanged a hopeful smile with Rin. "If she found a way to come see us and send us off on our first trip to the South, who knows, she may find a way to meet all of you very soon."

* * *

If there was anything that Sokka picked up on in terms of differences between the North and South, it was the Northern peoples' dedication to aesthetic pleasure, displayed in their instinct to beautify nearly everything in sight. Every nook and corner of the Land of Tui held some type of ornate structure. Perhaps if the South was rich enough, it would've had its fair share of fancy buildings, too, and there was no doubt that once the South got back on its feet, that was the direction it was headed. Still, it couldn't be denied that at the fundamental level, the North exuded beauty, grace, and refinement as if the land itself was the image of Tui whereas the South, believed to be the direct image of La, grasped onto simplicity, resource, and rawness. The North believed in symbolizing the divine beautifully whereas the South believed in preventing unnecessary extravagance. Of course, this in no way suggests that opposites don't attract; Sokka had grown rather fond of the city during the forty minutes of their stay so far.

As their gondola rounded a particular corner, the tenement houses and icy apartments disappeared, and in the glow of several mingled celestial lights, smaller individual homes revealed themselves.

"As of now, we are still in the commoners' sector, Your Highnesses," Daughter Ting said. "In a few minutes, we will reach the inner division. Many high-ranking guests, Global Conference attendees along with the Avatar were given lodging and extensive security there. They are currently staying in the southeastern lot; your stay will be in the northeastern lot. Because you are our special guests, for particular security reasons, the princess has arranged your stay at Crescent Moon Estate. It's really close to the Royal Palace. Twenty four-hour high-category security will be provided."

"The estate even has a path to enter through the back of the palace," Eiji followed. "Tomorrow, we will send a few representatives to give you a complete tour of the palace. You may visit freely and join us for lunch and dinner. If you prefer to stay in the estate for your meals, we also have everything set up there for your enjoyment. Servants will be present at all times. They will see to your needs and will be happy to show you around the city whenever you wish."

A gondola beside them rowed closer to them, and a tribesman at the front informed something to Daughter Ting. She smiled and nodded, standing up in the gondola to address all the guests in the nearby gondolas. "Good news, friends. It appears the princess arranged a welcome banquet in honor of our reunion with the sister tribe as well as the arrival of our international friends. All of you are invited to attend the palace tomorrow evening and help yourself to delicacies from all over the world."

Everyone cheered. Kya and Hakoda, despite their excitement, still requested Ivaneq to do something about having them meet the princess soon whereas Zhi and Ping kept exchanging uncertain looks with the Southern prince. In the middle of all this pandemonium, they spotted a fancy arching bridge up above in the far distance, connecting one side of the canal to the other, and past the bridge, they could see ice houses of high status come into view. Just before they could row underneath the bridge, a small but prominent pagoda that was completely black in appearance caught their attention. The glassy darkness of the structure seemed to glow as moonlight hit its obsidian walls.

"What's that?" Sokka asked.

"That's the Sacred Temple," Ting explained. "Also called the Moon Temple or La's Pagoda. It's the only temple in the North, dare I say the world, to be constructed out of black material."

"It's very beautiful," Katara said. "Then again, what is _not_ beautiful in this city?"

Kya linked her arms around her husband. "Dear, we should go. It's our first time in the North; it would bring us good luck if we visited a temple first thing."

"Not now, Mom," Sokka groaned, but Hakoda sided with his wife.

"Right you are, dear. But is the temple open…? If it's a Moon Temple, then you would expect it to be open at night..."

"The pagoda is open to the public all night only on special occasions," Eiji said. "But technically it's still 'open.' The time slot from three to six o'candle is blocked off for temple cleaning and maintenance, so even if the high priestess isn't there, the Caretaker must be."

"Caretaker?"

"Yes. It's a term of honor for the temple servant. She handles the cleaning and cooking of holy offerings and everything."

In a matter of minutes, the gondola stopped at the walkway leading up to the temple. Hakoda and Kya eagerly walked ahead, followed by Katara and a sleepy Kohana who was swinging over Sokka's shoulder. The warrior, though, was starting to become irritable, his clear preference being sleep instead of bowing to more statues. He yanked off his royalty pin and shoved it into his pocket. "Can't we go tomorrow morning?"

"Why don't you catch the next ship and head back to the South? You can sleep all you want on the ship," Katara suggested, earning a frown. "Remember, Mom said even if you don't believe, you need to learn to respect. This is the North, for goodness' sake."

In the meantime, Hakoda and Kya kept inquiring about the temple's history, to which Ting explained that the temple was one of the oldest, if not the oldest temple in the North. Several centuries ago, a few pious tribesmen collected obsidian rock near a volcanic island just a few miles west of the North's outskirts and constructed the temple. Fifty years ago, an avalanche caused the inside of the temple to nearly collapse. Due to the increased difficulty of obtaining more obsidian rock, black marble was imported from the Earth Kingdom and used to rebuild the interior of the temple, thus making it stronger in the process. That's why the temple's exterior is different from the interior despite the shared darkness.

"It's a very prestigious temple," Eiji said. "It stands out as one of few Northern temples predominantly run by female spiritual leaders. It is believed that undergoing a purification ritual at the pagoda will cleanse the ill effects of a person's birth chart. The place is famous for its spiritual energy and is said to get rid of compatibility issues, help couples conceive, and ward off life-threatening conditions."

 _That's complete yakshit_ , Sokka huffed, but Hakoda and Kya's interests were _definitely_ piqued.

"Should the ritual only be performed by the high priestess?"

"No, Chieftess Kya, the Caretaker can perform it, too, if need be. Though she's predominantly a servant, she can also perform services in the event that she gets promoted to priestess in the future."

The royal couple both looked at their oldest, who responded with an annoyed groan and a roll of his eyes. _Nope, they're not gonna miss out on this._

After extensive security measures and excessive reassurance from Hakoda, it was decided that the Southern family would be accompanied by three security guards, an attendant to help Hakoda walk from place to place, and Zhi and Ivaneq, who would then escort them to the Crescent Moon Estate. Ting, Eiji, and Rin bid their goodnights and agreed to join them for breakfast after a few hours. Everyone else decided to turn in for the night and provide the Southerners with privacy. Zhi cast off his moccasins, stepped into the temple, and returned several minutes later.

"We're in luck! The high priestess is inside as well. You may ask her if she is willing to perform the ritual. Also, the Caretaker told us to avoid the eastern portion at all costs. Apparently a few bells are hanging loosely and in danger of collapsing from pressure. Please stay away from the area and keep watch over the child to make sure he doesn't wander anywhere near it."

They stepped into the dark abyss of a temple with their bare feet. Kya, Hakoda, and Katara were nearly bursting with joy and awe as they ran their fingers along the obsidian glass walls, feeling their way inside. Sokka grumbled his way inside and kept up with the sound of Ivaneq's voice and his spiel about darkness as the symbol of Yang. He could hear water flowing somewhere within the darkness.

"As we all know, black is associated with the element of water, thus providing power, security, and protection. In order to help devotees experience abysmal darkness for themselves, the temple provides no lighting in this area. It also opens the pipes to let the water run down the walls and escape through the drainage system. One must feel their way towards the inside and listen to the flow of water. Darkness denotes the direct presence of La, who is mystery and water personified. Experience our great Father Spirit, friends. Experience the wonder of darkness!"

 _Wonder, my assblubber,_ Sokka sighed, trying to calm a waking Kohana who whimpered for the light.

Once they stepped into the vast inner chamber, they were finally able to see thanks to the presence of torches on the wall as well as the _hundreds_ of candles which lit up _every inch_ of the place. It was like standing in the middle of a cave constructed out of black crystals, which glowed in the candlelight. The Southerners set foot on the marble floor, completely mesmerized by the additional beauty of how the moonlight swooped in from a small opening in the ceiling and hit the obsidian-marble walls, which reflected the light with greater brilliance. The fragrance of incense slowly wafted in along with the soft winds from the window, which caused the bells hanging from the ceiling to sway and chime.

"You both said this temple is centuries old," Kya said to Zhi and Ivaneq. "It's shimmering like brand new."

"All thanks to the Caretaker."

"Oh, yes. She puts a lot of effort into keeping this place thriving."

"Does this temple have idols?" Hakoda asked.

"Oh, of course!" Zhi said. "They must be with her at the moment. She's probably washing them."

"This is by far my _favorite_ place in the North," Katara said as she walked around to explore. Kohana kicked his legs and slid down from his brother's grip, and he ran around with his big sister, finding just as much delight in the candles as she did. In a corner of the sanctuary was a short, frail old woman wearing dark blue robes and a white sash at her waist. She bowed in greeting as Zhi and Ivaneq introduced her to Kya and Hakoda. Sokka let out a deep breath and sat on the marble floor in another corner, leaning his head against the wall.

 _Alright, Sokka, deep breath now. Ignore the idiocy around you...just ignore..._

"Wolf Moon? Are you sure?"

Sokka snapped his head back in the direction of his parents, who went on raving about Sokka's birth chart as the high priestess, who looked rather alarmed by what the Southern royals were saying, nodded and looked over to the warrior. She then whispered something to Kya, who beckoned her son to come forward.

 _They're not letting this go, are they?_ He pulled himself up with great patience and ambled over to them. His mother sported a smile and placed her hands over his shoulders.

"This is my son. Sokka."

"Ah. 'He who understands.' Interesting name," the lady bowed. "Welcome to the Moon Temple, Prince Sokka."

The Southern chieftess nudged him, and he bowed back in greeting, but he was nowhere near enthusiastic to be standing in front of this high priestess or shamaness or whichever category of nonsense this lady was an expert in.

"He's a moonwatcher, I see," the old lady noted, her bony fingers taking a hold of his wrist. She concentrated hard and felt his pulse. "Based on his birth on the day of the solstice, he is a member of the clan of La, the Great Wolf. Wherever he goes, his eyes follow the moon, but now, his entire being will follow her."

His eyebrows quirked. _Who's her?_

"Oh, yes, of course. In fact, my son _loves_ the moon!" Kya said. "When he was born—"

"Mom, please—"

"Hush up!" And Kya went on to narrate a story that Sokka had heard a thousand times over. Apparently when he was born, he didn't open his eyes at all for the first few weeks. Everyone had been terribly afraid for him. The local healers all took a look at him but couldn't find any fault with him physically. Some had been worried that he'd been affected by a hidden disease, an infection in his eyes, or if his eyes had been in pain, but the pain option was ruled out because he was behaving fairly normal in terms of suckling, sleeping, and everything else a healthy newborn was capable of. Some healers advised that they keep him indoors and away from bright light until he was comfortable enough to open his eyes in an environment that mimicked the womb. Exactly one month into his birth, an anxious Hakoda brought him outside for the first time to have him be in the presence of a ritual for Tui. The moon was bright and full in the sky just as it had been the day of Sokka's birth. As the moonlight touched his closed eyelids for the first time, he stirred out of his sleep. His eyes fluttered open, and the first thing he saw was the full moon. He began to reach for the moonlight, cooing and smiling and making everyone else smile and laugh in relief and religiosity.

The high priestess was amused by the story, and as she caught sight of the Southern prince dozing off on his mother's shoulder with his closed eyes facing the direction of the moon though the ceiling' opening, she burst out laughing, her booming voice shaking him out of his sleep. Kya glared at him. _Did I raise you to sleep in the temple of all places?_

"Alright then. The only issue here is compatibility, yes? In that case, I think it's best if we perform the ritual in a few weeks when the moon is full again. It will also give you a chance to focus on your series of conferences."

"Do you think the ritual will be enough to cover the effects in his birth chart?" Hakoda asked. "It's just that he's several years past the traditional marrying age already. It's very difficult finding him the right girl of the right age gap..."

"Don't you worry about anything. The Spirits will provide." She took a brief look at a particular corner of the temple before adding, "I need to be heading back now, but the Caretaker can perform the service for you. For the time being, have the prince circumambulate from the inside of the pagoda three times. On the actual day of the ritual, he'll have to circumambulate a hundred times."

"Wait, _what_ now—?"

"Sokka," his mother's eyes widened from the influx of religious fervor. "You heard her. Circumambulate three times, no questions."

"But you said I won't be forced to do rituals!" he stood his ground.

The old woman chuckled again. "Leave him be, Chieftess Kya, we'll just add those to the number of circumambulations required on ritual day," to which the prince frowned. "In the meantime, be preparing for the ritual. There are a few rules you will need to follow…"

Sokka zoned out again, shaking his head at the sap they all praised as head priestess, but very quickly, he felt himself being distracted by something. A familiar fragrance, perhaps. He poked his nose in the air and sniffed. _Cardamom._ He could pick out the smell cardamom even in mid-sleep. And something else...something that just wasn't reaching his nose yet…

 _Moonflowers. Moonflowers and spice._

" _Who knows, she may find a way to meet all of you very soon."_

While Kya went on speaking with the high priestess, Hakoda was caught off guard by the sudden curious, maybe even serene look that washed over Sokka's face. It was almost like the warrior was caught in a kind of trance, fixing his look at a particular direction of the temple where the fragrance was coming from.

"Sokka? Sokka, where are you going?"

"Huh?" he snapped briefly into reality and saw that they were all staring at him. "Uh...I…" he sported a fake grumble. "I decided I'll go ahead and circumambulate. Just to get it out of the way…" Because there was no way he was dragging everyone else with him. Ignoring the lady's weird knowing look, he excused himself from the nonsense and made his way through the dimly lit temple. Somehow it seemed to get darker than it had been before, but he hung onto the light emitted from the candles.

He wandered through the pathway around the smaller shrines and passed by a couple of tiny rooms, which he guessed were for storage purposes. He ended up stepping into another hallway, more like a separate but attached building in the very back and followed the candles down the corridor, noting how the scent became much stronger. Eventually he reached a dead end with nowhere to go but a very tiny room from which quiet chanting could be heard.

" _What does she sound like?"_

" _She speaks very pleasantly. Very quietly. People hard of hearing won't get very far with her."_

The door was left ajar, and as he peeked through from an awkward angle, he saw a shadow move through the dim light. The more rational part of his brain was starting to fade away, fall completely asleep and numb all possibilities that the person inside wasn't the princess.

 _Just go in already._

After taking three deep breaths and still failing to calm his wild heartbeat, he creaked the door open a little further and stepped in. And he froze on the spot.

 _"What did she look like?"_

 _"We do not know. She was covered top to toe by white robes and face veils."_

The woman before him was, indeed, wearing modest white robes along with a face veil, albeit one that left only her eyes exposed. She didn't wear a betrothal necklace or any sort of similar accessory, indicating that she wasn't married and thus making it all the more possible that she could be the princess. She didn't notice him, though; she was busy drying the statues placed on the counter before her. The idols, most definitely the ones taken from the sanctum sanctorum, were smaller but similar to the ones Kya received as a gift: a black-marble manwolf accompanied by a white-marble woman, both bearing each other's color on their chests. Still chanting, the woman then took the idols into her arms, cradling them against her chest like they were infants, and she turned around, halting as she saw him. Moonlight gushed in from an open window and spilled over her, nearly making her glow.

Sokka gulped and let out a squeak. He began to feel lightheaded and sought balance by holding onto the door. Forget the temple's so-called abysmal darkness because he was falling really deep into her eyes instead. And _boy_ , were they the _softest_ shade of baby blue...like twin glaciers bathed in the right amount of light, looking back at him with equal curiosity. Despite being Water Tribe, he had never before seen _that exact shade_ in his life.

"Are you looking for the high priestess, sir—?"

"Your Highness!"


	10. I'll Pretend I Don't Know

**Chapter 10: I'll Pretend I Don't Know**

The masked woman, bathed in abundant moonlight, blinked at him in confusion as the breathless warrior cocked his head to the side following his outburst, grinning at her with absolute delight. "Sorry, that was loud, wasn't it?" As excited as he was, he was quite nervous, partly caught in an out-of-this-world kind of feeling after finally running into the one person he'd been so curious about the past few weeks. He tried to step into the room to partake in his curiosity, but he suddenly tripped on an unnoticed step and yelped his way forward in horror. He grabbed hold of the door before he could fall on top of the startled woman, who leaned back against the wall, wide-eyed, one arm wrapped around the idols and the other gripping the counter behind her. He was about to apologize but quickly lost his balance. His grip on the ice slipped and caused him to topple down to the ground, earning a gasp in response.

"Sorry, sorry!" He scrambled to get himself together. "I'm sorry, I didn't really see the step there and the— _oww,"_ his efforts to get up failed as he bumped his head against a cupboard. He landed back on his bottom, silently grumbling to himself as he rubbed his head. _Smooth today, aren't we?_

"I am so, _so_ sorry, I just...I didn't get enough sleep, you see, and…uhm…" He trailed off as he saw her outstretched palm waiting for him, the idols now sitting on the countertop.

"Are you alright?"

A strange tingle surged through him, making him suddenly feel relaxed, maybe even a little euphoric at the sound of her voice. He blinked and nodded, feeling warm all of a sudden. "Uh...y-yes, thank you...t-that's okay, I got it—"

"It's okay, let me help you."

While trying to fight off his embarrassment, he took her hand, and he was rather surprised to see how _light_ her complexion was for a tribeswoman. A snowy tan, so incredibly soft and smooth like a flower born from milk.

"You seemed to have hit your head quite hard," she noted. "I have healing abilities. If you'd like me to examine your head, I will be happy to do so."

"..."

"Sir? Excuse me?"

"Huh? Oh, it's fine, I'm okay..."

"Are you sure? It won't take long at all."

He didn't answer right away, repeatedly distracted. He swore it was those eyes of hers that were drawing him in like magnets and somehow making him feel lightheaded. Since he couldn't bring himself to protest, she led him to a small chair in the corner. With hooded eyelids, he glanced up at her as she ran her fingers gently over his head and maneuvered her way around the hairs in his wolf tail, taking great care to not mess it up.

"You're quite strong," she remarked, and he didn't have to see the rest of her face to know that she was smiling with every word she spoke. "I don't see anything to be worried about. How are you feeling? You're not in pain, are you?"

Realizing that he was staring at her rather unabashedly, he snapped out of his trance. "Oh, no, I'm good…thank you, ma'am, I..." he trailed off, fully aware that he was repeating his responses and highly unsure of what exactly to say next. What was wrong with him? He never felt like this around any woman before, never felt the nervousness of tripping over his words. It's safe to say that he hadn't run into a woman like her before, either; could it be possible for someone to be so _warm_ by voice alone?

"S-Sorry about that, Princess, ma'am," and then he got down on his knees and sprawled forward in a bow, catching her off guard and sending her a few steps back. "I'm honored to finally meet you, Your Highness."

"Sir, please don't bow, I'm not—"

"What you've done for the South is _remarkable_ , and I... _we_ won't ever forget your help."

"You must be mistaken, I'm not the princess—"

"Hey, don't you worry, I completely understand!" he burst with empathy, sitting up but immediately lowering his voice when it echoed loudly throughout the chamber. "I-I mean...it must have taken a lot for you to get past the security secretly."

"Secretly? But I—"

"I know it's annoying and all, and frankly, I'd be annoyed, too, to be restricted like that. But it's okay, you can trust me! I won't tell anyone that you're here—"

"I'm really not who you think I am, sir. There's been a misunderstanding. I'm not the princess."

A pause settled in as he gawked at her, unable to register her words in his daze. Not the princess? "You're not...?"

"No, I'm the temple servant."

But how could this woman _not_ be the princess? The white robes, the pleasant air about her that Ivaneq kept stressing every time Sokka prodded him to give away some kind of information about her. There was also the fact that it was extremely rare if not downright _impossible_ to run into a tribeswoman who was past marrying age but didn't have a betrothal necklace at her throat, _especially_ in a tradition-driven place like the North. Not everyone was like him and Katara, right? "You're not the princess...but...why?"

"Why?" the woman clutched the idols close to her chest. "Because the Spirits willed it that way, I suppose."

Slowly coming down from his daze, he shook his head, rubbing his temple to shake away any lingering effects of his tiredness. "Sorry, sorry, that's a stupid question, wasn't it?"

"Not at all," she laughed, but it wasn't in a mocking tone as he'd expected or heard from tribesfolk all throughout his life. Rather, she seemed to have been amused by the question. "The question why has puzzled philosophers for several millennia. I bet we all ask ourselves this at some point, right? Why we are or aren't a certain way?"

It still made no sense to him why she couldn't be the princess when she seemed to resemble a lot of what he fantasized the princess to be like based off of others' descriptions. Gentle, pleasant, radiant, most likely the opposite of him in many ways. But his confusion had reached a pause because she was laughing, and her laughter flowed smoothly like rippling water, and it was making him feel good inside. "I appreciate that, but I know it's still not one of my smartest moments. Today's been like that; a whole series of accidents thanks to the universe."

"The universe?"

"The universe and I are kind of in a love-mostly hate relationship. I guess today's a bit worse since I'm living out my karma to the fullest."

"Aww," she chuckled out of both amusement and pity. "I'm sure things will get better with a little sleep."

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, not realizing that his grin had widened and his chest had begun to leap. Goosebumps trailed across his skin, and a strange drumming filled his chest, but the fragrance of moonflowers and cardamom—the _exact_ fragrance that lined every word in the princess's letter to him as well as her handwritten documents outlining the protocol for the South's revival— calmed him greatly, tempting to widen the smile on his face.

"You must not be from around here. Were you travelling with the Southern royal family by any chance, Mr...?"

It was only then that Sokka realized that he'd discarded his badge of royalty long before, so there was no way of anyone figuring out that he was actually royalty. He also realized that he had been blabbering all this time but hadn't properly introduced himself. But for some reason, he didn't feel like introducing himself as the Southern prince. In just a few minutes, he was attracted to the point of wanting to be relatable to this woman who owned such a sweet laugh and a warm ambience about her. He didn't want to establish a clear wall of difference. Besides, if there really was a slim chance somewhere or somehow that she really was the princess like his innermost instinct was screaming that she was— _how can she_ not _be?_ — then it would level the playing field. "W-Wang. My name's... Wang. Wang Fire. And yes, I was travelling with them. I...I'm actually a friend and personal guard of the prince."

"Wang Fire," she enunciated. "That's a very unique name. Are your wife and children here, too?"

"I'm not married."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I just kind of assumed..."

"Nah, it's fine," he shrugged. "People don't expect to run into unmarried twenty three year-olds in the Water Tribe of all places."

"Well that makes us two of a kind, I suppose," she chuckled, bowing. "Anyhow, it's an honor to meet someone who's very close to the royal family. And wow, a friend of Prince Sokka. We've heard many things about him."

"Really?"

"All good things, of course. And also that he happens to be a harsh critic of the North."

His eyes widened. Did the entire North Pole know about this? "How did you know that he...?"

"I work in the palace some days. It's something I've heard among the officials. They're trying to make it as pleasant for him as possible." She chuckled nervously. "Of course, there's no need for the prince to feel bad. It's very understandable considering all that happened. I hope we can be redeemed by doing our best to please him and make his stay here comfortable."

"Well that's not really necessary," he squeaked, perhaps with more sincerity than necessary for a "friend and guard" of the prince. "Actually, he's loosened up a lot. The North has been going through so much, and we weren't aware of it." _And the princess…_ He sighed, reminded of those articles and the chaos written all over the crew members' faces. "It's a big misunderstanding on my...er, the prince's part. He regrets it and wants to leave it behind—"

"I thought you were circumambulating, son," interrupted a third voice. The prince turned around to see the high priestess standing by the doorway.

"I didn't expect to find you here," she said, stepping in. "Since only religious authorities are allowed back here." The older woman then noted the distracted look on the prince's face and smiled knowingly before turning to the woman. "The workers are here, dear, if you would like to speak with them about the repairs. Also, I have a few errands to run. Would you be willing to perform the protection ritual for the visiting family afterwards?"

"Yes, Mother Osha." The woman bowed to the priestess and then to Sokka, her smile recognizable despite hidden beneath her face veil. "It's delightful meeting you. Please keep away from the eastern chamber." And as she made her way out of the room with the idols, Sokka's gaze trailed behind her, and his senses kept reveling in the scent of moonflowers and spice. He couldn't follow her out, though, thanks to the priestess's look, and he felt compelled to explain himself.

"I heard the princess wears white robes and face veils, so I thought..."

"Maybe so, but the caretaker's white robes are ceremonial, not exactly royal," Priestess Osha explained. "She sometimes wears them when she's on temple premises. And also, don't be mistaken by the face veils worn by the servant women and the female workers in general. It's required of them if they work anywhere in or near the palace and the inner division. I understand you would have no way of knowing this. If you were from around here, you would've recognized those robes as part of her uniform."

"Oh, I see."

"You seem to be a bit too eager to see Her Highness."

A blush crept over his cheeks. "Not at all, I was just...I'm grateful for her help, that's all. Would be nice if I can say it to her face."

"I don't think that's possible. Chief Arnook is adamant about making sure she does not leave the palace premises or have anyone personally contact her for any reason. It's highly unlikely that anyone will have a chance to speak with her, let alone see her face or expect her to come see them. And if by some miracle she does come and see them, she's not allowed to without lots of backup."

Disappointment flared up in him, but he tried not to show it.

"So don't bow to every woman you see thinking she's the princess. It's not at all possible that she is."

His answer came in the form of a flushed face.

* * *

Maybe he'd hit his noggin a little too hard, or maybe it was the lack of sleep and constant curiosity regarding the princess. His eagerness to see her must have also played into his projecting of the very little qualities he knew of her onto people who may potentially resemble her. Maybe his nose was betraying him, too; he'd been caught up in that same fragrance every time he read her letter, after all, and it was totally possible for his sleep-deprived brain to think he was still smelling that fragrance.

At the same time, though, he knew he wasn't _completely_ going crazy. Even if his nose and mind were playing tricks on him, they hadn't been doing so for the past hour when they toured the city. Why now all of a sudden?

 _Come on, now, think straight. Maybe there's a popular moonflower spice perfume or something out there that the princess and the caretaker must both use…_ Although a temple servant probably wouldn't share the same exact perfume with the princess given the fact that their statuses are on opposing ends of the spectrum...

 _But anyway._

"It took you this long to go around _once?"_ chimed in Katara's voice as she began to approach him. "What, did you fall asleep on the wall or something?"

"I got lost, okay? There was another room back there," he said. "And also, don't go around blabbering that we're the royal family in front of people."

"Why not? This is the first time we've ever felt royal to begin with."

True, very true. "But let's just keep it to ourselves, alright? We're in a temple after all; best if we stopped flaunting for once."

"Since when did you start to care about being humble in a temple?" she teased. "You must have some kind of motive up your sleeve."

"There's no motive, okay? We've had enough special treatment, and frankly it's annoying. Tell Mom and Dad, too."

"Speaking of Mom and Dad, they're planning on making a donation to the temple," Katara said. "They think it'll be good if you're the one to sign the papers."

"Why me?"

"I don't know, maybe writing your name down as the donor will help you get married sooner."

"Nonsense," the prince huffed. "Write your name down if you want, but if you ask me, wasting even a single copper piece on this place is useless. You're not getting anything from me."

"How can you say that? The Spirits have been gracious to us, and you're here standing around with zero gratitude whatsoever."

"My gratitude goes out to the princess, an actual concrete human being, mind you."

The glare on Katara's face then morphed into a smile. _Ah, I see._

* * *

It was an unconscious endeavor on his part, and the reason-loving part of him denied it to be anything more than curiosity and "strict detective work" because he believed— no, he _knew_ deep down— that she had to be the princess, so he continued his circumambulations (now amounting to more than three) for the sake of seeing the temple caretaker again. She was sitting on a raised platform near the high altar and was setting the idols in their respective space on the pedestal. Next to her was a basket of white flowers: a combination of arctic jasmines, white water lilies, and moonflowers.

 _Moonflowers. Well there you have it, that's where the fragrance is coming form._

 _But she didn't have a basket of flowers before. And the cardamom—_

 _Don't overthink it._

 _Don't_ under _think it._

She turned a few hidden latches on the two idols, which allowed each of them to split into two parts and turn on their respective hinges. Each half found its companion in the other idol's corresponding half, and they fit together like a perfect puzzle piece, forming two connected but opposite-facing statues of the androgynous Tui-La being, one half La's darkness and the other Tui's light. She turned another set of latches to keep the combined idols locked in place, and she went on placing small garlands around the idols and decorating the space around them with the white flowers. Afterwards, she walked through the hallways and corridors, lighting the tiny ice lanterns that lined the walls. She passed by him occasionally, answering his smile with her hidden one before disappearing into another chamber. From then on, his gaze followed the presence of everything that was white, expecting it to be her, but he didn't see her again until she stepped back out minutes later, lugging a basket behind her: a very large basket filled with mouth-watering pastries. He broke out of his rounds to help.

"Can I help?"

"It's alright, I got it."

"It won't take long at all, ma'am," he smiled, echoing her words from earlier, and he set the basket next to the altar. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"That's all, thank you so much."

As he went back to his rounds, she began chanting softly in a foreign tongue, likely in Angkaran or Nagaran, the two languages of the ancient Water Tribe scriptures. Kya and Hakoda, who were lost in conversation with Ivaneq, paused and immediately became drawn to the woman and her chanting. Chieftess Kya was especially elated; she had always dreamed of learning either Angkaran or Nagaran if not both so that she could read the scriptures for herself instead of relying on the versions translated into vernacular languages. She was also caught off guard by how young the caretaker seemed despite her face being covered and even more so by the fact that she didn't have a marital necklace, so the chieftess was the first to approach the woman. Still keeping some distance from the raised platform, Kya and Hakoda, escorted by the still-anxious Zhi and Ivaneq, refrained from introducing themselves to avoid interrupting the woman's rituals until she stopped her chanting and noticed them, bowing in greeting. Kya was quick to jump into introduction and conversation and might have given away their positions as royalty if it wasn't for Katara, who stepped in and whispered something in her ear. Kya then took off her royalty badge before speaking with the woman; the chieftess referred to herself as hailing from the Southern Water Tribe instead of name and position.

"Can you speak Angkaran, dear?" she asked the woman. "Or Nagaran? Or did you learn the chants only?"

"I'm fluent in both languages, ma'am," the woman replied.

"So you can read and write them as well?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"My goodness, you are very blessed, child. And you're so _young_ for performing rituals and representing the Mother Goddess! It usually takes many years to learn the liturgical arts."

A wandering Kohana soon joined the group; the child stared at the basket of pastries longingly— maybe even as longingly as Sokka might have been if he wasn't so caught up in his observations— but they were likely offerings and were off-limits until they were served to the spirits.

"Dad, I'm hungry," the boy tugged at Hakoda's sleeve. "Daaaadd…"

"Just a little while, pup, we'll have breakfast."

"No, I'm hungry nooooowww!"

"He's just looking for an excuse to chomp on those cakes," Katara said. Hakoda laughed and tickled his younger son to distract him, and when that failed to take his mind off of the pastries, the Southern chief suggested that they explore the rest of the temple.

While the rest of his family went around viewing the other chambers along with Ivaneq, Sokka found himself craving her warm company again, so he approached her, posing as if he had a genuine question.

"So, uh...the head priestess lady said that I'd need to have a ritual done, and…" he trailed off as she waited patiently for him to continue, blinking those breathtaking eyes of hers. _What do I say?_ "And...oh, I can't remember which day, though. Do you happen to have an idea when…?"

"Do you know which ritual?"

"Well, my parents told her something about my birth chart."

"Depending on the specific issue, birth chart related rituals are usually performed during the full moon or the Birth Moon."

"Birth Moon?"

"It's Northern slang for the new moon."

"Interesting," he said. "Do you have a term for the full moon?"

"Yes. Lady Moon."

"Is there a meaning behind those terms?"

"Oh yeah, there's an extensive mythology behind it. I'm sure you wouldn't be interested."

He blinked. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"I get that you're not exactly religious," she said, and to his surprise, she in no way sounded like she was disapproving of his lack of belief given her own religiosity. It was quite liberating. "I can see whether someone's circumambulations are pious or pressured. Yours seem to belong to the second category. It also seems to me that you're not too concerned with the ritual. You must be asking for your family members, yes?"

"Impressive," he grinned. "But I'd still like to hear more. If you're okay with revealing some of your secrets to a nonbeliever, that is."

She laughed. "Well, it's just that many legends say that Tui is 'born' on new moon days and 'matures' on full moon days. And I guess I'd be offending a vast majority of priests out there when I say this, but given our matchmaking culture, we're inclined to associate the Goddess with fertility metaphors, aren't we? Sometimes we don't see the bigger picture, the possibility for other realities."

And he beamed, for once having run into someone of greater intellect than the shamans and priests down South. "Other realities. I like the sound of that."

He didn't have long to milk the conversation, though, since a trio of tribesmen, likely the workers she'd been waiting to speak with, caught her attention. Sokka trailed behind them, maintaining some distance while she led them to a blocked-off chamber to the east; the area was definitely in need of renovation, and it appeared as if the entire chamber was about to cave in. A very large bell hung down from the ceiling, obviously in need of repair with the cracks near its rim and around the ceiling that held it in place. The workers carefully stepped in and surveyed the area. In the meantime, the woman wrote something on a sheet of parchment and subsequently attached the sign to the wall of the icy archway.

 _Caution: area under construction. Please do not cross beyond this point._

"Hey, wait a minute. The calligraphy..." Sokka hid himself in the shadows and pulled out the princess's letter. He sieved through it and observed the writing before diverting his attention back to the sign; both appeared to be identical in style. He then caught hold of a word that appeared in both writing samples: _please_. Sure enough, the words in both samples were exact matches.

She _had_ to be the one who wrote this letter. She _had_ to be the princess.

 _Or can it be that she was a_ scribe _for the princess?_

 _But Ivaneq said—_

"Prince Sokka? What are you doing here?"

Sokka jumped and saw Zhi approaching him. The prince slipped the letter back into his pocket. "Shhh!"

"Is everything okay, sir?"

"Yeah, yeah." He then noted that the crewman had a disturbed look on his face, which was quickly masked with a superficial smile. "What happened, Brother Zhi?"

"Nothing, sir. I was just wondering where you'd been. Everyone was looking for you."

The prince raised his eyebrows, unconvinced. "You're not telling me something."

"It's nothing, sir, I assure you—"

"Either you'll tell me right now or I'm going to have to find out on my own. One way or another, I _will_ know what's up." Sokka then softened his tone and led Zhi a few feet away. "Please, tell me. Anything about the princess? There's no danger, right?"

Zhi sighed. "You've already learned too much about our situation here, Your Highness."

"And I still have a lot more to learn. Tell me, what is it?"

"Well...it's just that…day by day, Her Highness is becoming more and more adamant about her decisions...especially the ones regarding her safety."

"What do you mean?"

The Northerner did his best to overcome his reluctance and admitted, "A princess without a backbone... That's what they're saying."

"Wait, what now?

"They're saying she's too soft. Unfit to rule."

"And why is that?" Sokka glared.

"Because it's practically established that she can't be assertive when necessary. Apparently, Chief Arnook appointed a few people to regularly taste the princess's food before it can be offered to her. Just to make sure her meals are safe for her to eat. But she dismissed them even before they had a chance to do their job."

Anxiety bubbled within the Southern warrior. He looked at the woman, who was now speaking with the workers. "Do you really think there's a chance that she could be... _poisoned?"_ he asked.

"The palace is filled with Khasiq's supporters. What's to say that she _won't_ be poisoned? There's no guarantee." Zhi shuddered. "And yet, she insists that she doesn't need such safety measures. _And_ she's still refusing a bodyguard. All of her reasons are revolving around what-ifs. 'What if this person gets hurt protecting me? What if that person gets hurt protecting me? I won't be the cause of another's suffering.' That's all she's thinking about."

"She's not in a position to think like that," Sokka said worriedly. "Her life is in danger. Doesn't she _see_ that?"

"But she feels like she's deliberately putting the lives of those people in danger. All she can think about is how these people are easily susceptible to harm and how other people are relying on them to make a living."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we are not able to do anything if we don't have the full amount paid," Sokka heard the workers say to the caretaker. "The full amount is one thousand gold pieces. So far, seven hundred gold pieces have been extracted from your funds."

"Please, you have to understand, " she said. "The temple has so many visitors every day. We have playschool starting early in the mornings. The assistant priestesses are constantly training. The elderly often visit for meditations and spiritual practices. Expecting women attend for pregnancy rituals. These are only a few examples, and you can imagine how it is during holy days and festivals."

"The princess has been highly generous," a worker said. "She's offering three thousand gold pieces starting this upcoming year for each temple. Surely you can wait until the end of the year to repair the chamber. It's only a few more months."

"But if we don't do something about this really soon, who knows what will happen. You've seen how the chamber is. People will get hurt, and they have families of their own who are relying on them."

The prince widened his eyes at the striking similarities between hers and the princess's rhetoric. _And she says she's not the princess._

"It also doesn't help that Her Highness hasn't selected a war minister for her Council yet, sir," Zhi went on, bringing Sokka back down to earth. "And this is greatly affecting her authoritative image. It's been three weeks since she began selecting the members of her Council, and so far, she's chosen a minister for security and defense, but the defense cabinet is not complete until a war minister is chosen. There's even a rumor floating around that she doesn't _plan_ on choosing a war minister or even collaborating with the current war minister in Khasiq's council. You can imagine how concerning this is for the many people who are starting to side with her politically. Defense of her allies is guaranteed, but her security is highly threatened; what's the point in supporting a leader who is an easy target?"

"So does she plan on just _ignoring_ the threats at this point?" Sokka's chest pounded. "What's her response to the internal conflicts?"

"Many of the officials have been asking her about her take on Khasiq and his team, but she hasn't given a response in the offensive," Zhi said. "She insists that she will sort out these conflicts in other ways, obviously ways that are nonviolent. Conversations, compromises, tactics...how far will all of that get her? Khasiq is _not_ a man to be having a tea party with."

Sokka's frown deepened.

"The implications of having a soft-hearted leader are not always good," the Northerner added. "She won't stand a chance against her internal aggressors if she clings to nonviolence and tactics. That's not what politics is about. But there's just nothing we can say to a woman who's unwilling to let even the _Spirits_ be her shield. She'd rather face the consequences on her own than ever dare to drag anyone into danger."

The Southern warrior's agitation increased by the second as he kept his gaze glued to the woman. "Zhi, didn't you say that the princess does not have scribes to reproduce her writing?"

The crewman, not understanding what the question had to do with their conversation and also wary of the prince's keen interest in the caretaker, answered, "Yes, sir, I did. The princess did not appoint scribes."

* * *

In a matter of minutes, all conversations came to a pause, and the masked woman rang one of the main temple bells that hung from the ceiling in the main sanctum. The chimes echoed through the chamber and garnered everyone's attention. She then began chanting again and stepped onto the platform, lighting a very large torch in the center with a smaller torch. She also lit some incense, signalling the beginning of the ritual. Whenever possible, Ivaneq picked up on the very few words he knew in the Nagaran chants and related their meanings to the best of his ability to the Southern couple. Some of the meanings nearly brought Kya to tears. "Beautiful, just beautiful," she would say. Hakoda, too, was mesmerized by the prayers, and he didn't stress on calling Sokka over to them; knowing the prince, he would only go off on his classic rant of how rituals were nothing but tools that priests and shamans capitalized on and scammed the public with; they deemed it was best if they called him for his part of the ceremony instead of having him linger any longer than he was required. The Southern Chief was pleasantly surprised, however, to see his son join them on his own volition and manage to stay quiet despite observing what he normally deemed to be "parts of a nonsense profession." In fact, it wasn't normal at all for Sokka to act so mellow and, dare he say, shy. _Especially_ in a religious setting.

"Must I remind you to do this every time?" Kya sighed as she made her older son bring his palms together in prayer fashion, just in time for the woman to invoke the Spirits by briefly transitioning into the common tongue.

"In the name of Tui and La. Merciful upholders of civilization."

While everyone else repeated the chant, Sokka recognized it to be the exact phrase that appeared in the princess's Southern Revival plan documents, and his mind began to reconnect the complex dots he'd connected before, weaving justifications for this woman being the princess herself who came to see them and welcome them.

 _Don't flatter yourself too much,_ the skeptical part of him said weakly. _It's a very common prayer. You've heard it before, too, haven't you?_

 _The writings match, the prayers match, the generosities match. There's no reason why she's not her._

The woman turned around and held her arms out as she looked at Kohana, her eyes lit with serenity. Kya nudged the little boy to go up to her, and he took small steps forward, but ultimately, he was shy and remained close to his mother.

"Go on, now, sweetie," Kya urged her younger son. "She's like Tui. You love Tui, don't you?"

The boy nodded and watched the woman with all the fascination and wonder a child could muster, occasionally shifting his gaze to the basket of cakes. He was delighted when the "Tui" woman reached into the basket and took out a wrapped pastry, holding it out to him to coax him forward.

"It's alright," Hakoda stepped in. "I'm guessing these cakes have to be offered to the Spirits, first."

"Sir, if the Spirits are present within pieces of stone, surely they are present in your son as well. I have already made the offering out to them."

Kohana made his way up front, taking the cake and eyeing it through the clear wrapper as the woman went back to her gentle chanting. She dipped her hand in the sanctified water and sprinkled some on him, making him giggle. Though normally turned off by rituals, Sokka couldn't help smiling this time.

"Can you do it again?" Kohana asked, immediately being shushed by his parents, but the woman simply chuckled and sprinkled water on him again, making him laugh. As the chanting went on, the little prince tore the wrapper open and indulged in his treat, smearing the icing over his coat and earning stern looks from his parents. When the boy was relaxed enough, the caretaker brought him into her arms and lifted him up.

"Kohana, you're messing up her robes," Kya said, nearly shrieking as her younger son held onto the woman's face veil and smeared it with cake, but the woman didn't seem to mind. She carried the boy over to a wall on the left side of the altar space, facing the symbol of Yin and Yang that was etched high up on the wall. She guided Kohana's hand to where he touched the symbol, and she chanted a few more mantras, keeping his tiny hand there.

"Are you Tui?" the boy asked her eventually, earning more commands from his parents to be quiet. The woman welcomed the question, though, and shook her head.

"No, sweetie, but I can talk to her."

"You can?"

"Mhm."

"Can you ask her to give me another cake? No wait, actually I want two."

Hakoda and Kya shook their heads in disapproval, but the woman laughed and set the boy down, granting his wish and even giving him an extra. She then placed her hand on top of his head, softly uttering a blessing. " _Suhanna. Nimmena ugara igarianiti, iqaliatune nunnuna khamusiti."_

"I've never heard of that prayer before," Hakoda pointed out, an observation seconded by his wife. "Is it specific to the North, Brother Ivaneq?"

"This is the first time I'm hearing it. I've never heard Priestess Osha say that blessing before," Ivaneq said. "Zhi, you studied some Nagaran when you were younger. Do you have any idea what it means?"

"I need to hear it again. Maybe I can pick out some words."

When Kohana's turn was over, Ivaneq, taking care not to give away their royal status under grounds of humility in the sacred space, explained that the couple wanted all of their children to undergo the protection ritual. The woman glanced at the Southern siblings and then at her hands. "Oh no."

"What's wrong?" Kya asked.

"I'm not sure if I have the strength to pick them up. Whatever will I do?"

Laughs reverberated through the temple as Katara smilingly made her way up and also received a cake. Upon earning compliments over her soft skin, the Southern princess raved to the woman about her special seaweed lotion. Sokka shook his head, trying to seem annoyed, but he was too drawn towards the woman and her warmth— the woman he knew _had_ to _absolutely_ be the princess— to really care about anything else at the moment. He watched her place her hand over Katara's head and repeat the foreign blessing from before. " _Suhanna. Nimmena ugara igarianiti, iqaliatune nunnuna khamusiti."_

"Something about good fortunes and giving something in return," Zhi said. "How did it go again? _Nimmena ugara…_ "

Knowing he was up next, Sokka stepped forward without being told for once. He breathed in the moonflower fragrance, his smile widening.

"What's with you sniffing things around like a dog?" Katara said.

Sokka gave his sister a flustered look, feeling the hot air trap him in place. "A _wolf_ , mind you!" he squeaked.

"Riiighhht, like a wolf. My bad."

The embarrassed warrior turned to the woman, who was trying to hold back her laughter.

"Please excuse their antics," Hakoda said. "They're both several years past marrying age and yet still act like children."

"I don't mind it at all," the woman said. "It's actually very endearing to watch these two interact. It must be wonderful to have a sibling." She then reached into the pastry basket and pulled out two cakes, placing them in the prince's hands.

"Oh...thanks, but one cake is enough for me..."

"No harm done," she said. "I kind of saw you staring at the cakes when you were helping me out earlier."

Sokka felt his embarrassment wash away and his chest inflate. He grinned as she sprinkled the holy water over him, and he willingly followed her to the wall holding the Yin-Yang symbol.

"I know you're not religious," she said to him. "If at any point you feel uncomfortable, just let me know, and we can stop the ritual."

"That's very kind of you, but I'm sure it won't be a problem," he smiled.

"I got it now," Zhi said in a low voice. "' _Suhanna_. _Nimmena ugara igarianiti, iqaliatune nunnuna khamusiti._ In the name of the Spirits. May you take my good fortunes and give your dangers in return.' It must be a mantra that redirects negative energy. I've never heard of it, though."

The prince thawed significantly at that. _"She'd rather face the consequences on her own than ever dare to drag anyone into danger."_

Before the woman could say the mantra, Sokka asked, "Actually, can we skip this step?"

* * *

Kya and Hakoda were preoccupied by anxiety and disappointment. It made no sense for Sokka to skip the blessing, which they felt was the most crucial part of the whole ritual. Then again, their son was acting a little strangely today for some reason, and they may never know the specifics as to why. Perhaps the pinnacle of their shock came when he rushed outside to their gondola, dodged the guards, and fetched what he had stored in his compartment. He ran back into the pagoda and jogged over to the woman.

"So, uh...Ivaneq just told me that the prince plans to donate something to the temple."

The woman blinked in disbelief. "The prince? Prince Sokka?"

"Yeah," he felt his chest inflating again with the way she said his name. "Eight hundred gold pieces."

She widened her eyes. "Eight hundred what? Mr. Wang, are you sure? Does he sincerely want to donate? I heard he's not religious at all, either."

"He had a feeling that you...I mean, your princess is rather religious," he said knowingly, earning another surprised look. "He wanted to be able to help out in some way, so he kind of entrusted me with the money to use for religious purposes." He gave her the bag that he got from his compartment. "What better way to help out than to help cover the costs for the eastern chamber's renovation? It's a really nice pagoda, besides."

She took a look at the vulnerable eastern chamber before turning back to him. "That's extremely sweet of him...but we only need three hundred gold pieces to—"

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind," he insisted.

"But...but…"

Sokka sighed. "This isn't the prince's effort to show off in anyway, ma'am."

"I wasn't thinking of it like that, sir."

"But I still want you to know. Everything he has is basically what the princess gave him, directly or indirectly. These gold pieces right here, he only received them since Her Highness was able to get word out to Ba Sing Se sooner about our natural resources. So naturally he wants to show his gratitude, and he really regrets underestimating the North. So don't think of this as the prince's donation, per se. Think of it as the princess's generosity that's being recycled."

She didn't say anything for a moment, coughing and looking away. "I don't think we'll ever be able to thank you for this, Mr. Wang Fire. For choosing to donate here, I mean. This is really…I..."

He smiled a smile that seemed to reach both ends of the earth. "If you really want to thank me, maybe you can start speaking to me in the informal tone? We are friends now, aren't we?"

Before she could answer, frantic footsteps interrupted their conversation. Ivaneq and Zhi came rushing towards Sokka, perturbed looks raiding their faces again. "Sir, I think it's best if we leave as soon as possible."


End file.
